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Ayesha Bashir

Junior Associate

Ayesha Bashir is a Junior Associate at RIAA Barker Gillette’s Islamabad office. She assists the firm’s partners and senior associates on a broad range of corporate, commercial, and international law matters, including but not limited to international trade, banking and finance, debt restructuring and security arrangements, and development projects.

Drawing on her LL.M. from Harvard Law School and international experience, Ayesha has developed particular strength in navigating complex cross-border issues. She has worked on and published in emerging areas such as digital assets, energy technology, and AI with leading academic presses, reflecting her interest in the intersection of law, finance, and technology.

Recognized through awards for academic and professional excellence, as well as success in international moot competitions, Ayesha combines rigorous legal training with practical, cross-border insight in advising clients.

Education
  • Harvard Law School, LL.M (Master of Laws), 2025
  • Hamad Bin Khalifa University, J.D (Juris Doctor), 2024
  • Bahria University, Bachelor of Social Sciences, 2019
Experience
  • Student Attorney & Team Lead at Harvard Law Entrepreneurship Project
  • Intern at Qatar International Court & Dispute Resolution Centre
  • Intern at O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law
  • Judicial Intern at Supreme Court of Pakistan
  • Legislative Intern at National Assembly of Pakistan
  • Research Assistant at Hamad Bin Khalifa University
  • Executive Editor at Harvard Business Law Review
  • Executive Editor at Harvard Negotiation Law Review
  • Co-VP of Logistics and Events at Harvard Law School Blockchain and FinTech Initiative
  • Moot Coach at HBKU Willem C. Vis International Commercial Arbitration
  • Founder & Editor-in-Chief at HBKU Law Society Newsletter
Languages

English, Urdu, and Arabic

Memberships
  • Islamabad Bar Council
  • Islamabad Bar Association
  • Young International Council for Commercial Arbitration
Practices
Publications
  • George Dimitropoulos, Ayesha Bashir and Safaa Al-Jaber, ‘Digital Assets and Transnational Financial Law’ in Jason Grant Allen Et al. (eds), Oxford Handbook of Digital Assets and the Law (Forthcoming Oxford University Press 2026)
  • Damilola Olawuyi and Ayesha Bashir, ‘Energy Ethics’ in Ibrahim Dincer (ed), Comprehensive Energy Systems 2ndEdition (Volume 1: Energy Fundamentals) (Elsevier, August 2024)
  • Barry Solaiman and Ayesha Bashir, ‘Regulating Al in the Middle East’ in Barry Solaiman and I. Glenn Cohen (eds), Research Handbook on Health, AI and the Law (Edward Elgar Publishing 2024)
Recognition and Awards

Qatar Foundation Excellence Award

HBKU Faculty Award – Contributed Most to the Intellectual Life of the College

Paigham-E-Pakistan Award

First Place at the DIFC Courts Digital Economy Court Moot Competition

Second Place at the DLA Piper Sustainability Moot

Second Place at the Amity University Dubai International Client-Counselling Competition

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News/Insight

  • Coal Supply Safeguarded in High-Stakes Pakistan Energy Dispute

    RIAA Barker Gillette has secured the suspension of an injunction that threatened to disrupt coal offloading for Huaneng Shandong Ruyi (Pakistan) Energy, a 1320 MW imported coal-fired power plant central to Pakistan's generation mix. The appellate court's decision restored operational flexibility in a complex Pakistan energy dispute spanning multiple agreements, a foreign-seated arb...


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  • E-Commerce Advisory on Customs Valuation in Pakistan

    RIAA Barker Gillette recently advised one of the world’s fastest-growing international e-commerce platforms on customs valuation in Pakistan and import compliance. The engagement addressed the platform’s expanding operations in Pakistan amid evolving regulatory requirements for cross-border digital commerce.


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  • RIAA defeats ship arrest of M/V Lady Ileen amid the Strait of Hormuz crisis

    The Strait of Hormuz crisis has produced a new wave of shipping disputes — diverted voyages, stranded cargoes, war-risk invocations — with Pakistan's admiralty courts at Karachi emerging as a key forum. Against that backdrop, last week the Sindh High Court released M/V Lady Ileen, a Palau-flagged bulk carrier arrested at Karachi since March 2026. The Court acted on a jurisd...


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  • PTA Anti-Dumping Duties: RIAA Barker Gillette Secures 9.50%

    In July 2025, RIAA Barker Gillette filed an application on behalf of Lotte Chemical Pakistan Limited (LCPL) before the National Tariff Commission (the Commission), seeking anti-dumping duties on imports of purified terephthalic acid (PTA) from China. T...


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  • Constitutional Challenge to NEPRA Prosumer Regulations

    RIAA Barker Gillette has filed a constitutional petition before the Islamabad High Court challenging the NEPRA Prosumer Regulations 2026. The regulations replaced Pakistan's decade-old net metering regime with a n...


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What clients say...

  • Chambers Asia-Pacific 2025

    "RIAA Barker Gillette has always had the most apt ability to handle, manage and steer complex and difficult matters in the right legal direction."

  • Legal 500 2025

    "We have worked with RIAA on a number of complex multi-jurisdictional matters. Throughout, they provided not only exceptional local advice but proved excellent at collaborating with firms across the world. They were instrumental in developing and implementing a comprehensive strategy."

  • Chambers Asia-Pacific 2025

    "Our operation is complex and has many nuances, and they have helped us navigate all of them promptly and professionally."

  • Legal 500 2024

    "Very professional firm, able to provide clear, concise and constructive advice. Proven very astute in formulating overall strategies of engagement."

  • Chambers Asia-Pacific 2024

    "RIAA is highly professional, meeting tight deadlines with the utmost proficiency. They have always come up with out-of-the-box solutions."

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