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Asif Saeed Khan Khosa

Former Chief Justice of Pakistan

Related Capabilities

International Arbitration / Commercial Disputes

Educational Qualifications:

  • M.A. in English Language and Literature
  • Law Tripos, Part I, from Queens’ College, University of Cambridge, United Kingdom in 1977
  • LL.M. from Queens’ College, University of Cambridge, United Kingdom in 1978 with specialization in Public International Law in the subjects of the Law of Peace, the Law of War and Armed Conflict, the Law of International Institutions and the Law of Civil Liberties
  • Called to the Bar on 26.07.1979 at the Honourable Society of Lincoln’s Inn, London, United Kingdom and conferred the degree of Utter Barrister

Memberships

Enrolled as:

  • Advocate of the Lahore High Court on 13.11.1979
  • Advocate of the Supreme Court of Pakistan on 12.09.1985
  • Called to the Bar at the Honourable Society of Lincoln’s Inn

Legal practice:

  • Handled thousands of cases of constitutional, criminal, civil, service, revenue and election laws as an Advocate Supreme Court and High Court
  • Over 600 cases conducted as an Advocate reported in various Law Reports of the country

Judicial career:

Elevated to the Bench and appointed as a Judge of the Lahore High Court, Lahore (a court of appeal which is the second highest Court of the country) on May 21, 1998

Appointed as a Judge of the Supreme Court of Pakistan on February 18, 2010

Acted as the Chief Justice of Pakistan from June 05, 2017 to June 11, 2017, June 29, 2017 to July 05, 2017, May 14, 2018 to May 30, 2018 and December 17, 2018 to December 23, 2018

Appointed as the 26 th Chief Justice of Pakistan on January 18, 2019

Retired as the Chief Justice of Pakistan on December 20, 2019

Decided about fifty-seven thousand cases over a period of about twenty- two years

Publications:

First book: ‘Heeding the Constitution’ (1995)

Second book: ‘Constitutional Apologues’ (1997)

Third book: ‘Judging with Passion’ (2008)

Fourth book: ‘Breaking New Ground & Settling Conflicting Judicial Opinions’ (2021)

Fifth book: In the process of being written

Chief Editor of Key Law Reports (KLR) from 1989 to 1998
Scores of articles and research papers on diverse constitutional and legal issues published in major law reports and newspapers of the country since 1988

Conferences, seminars and symposia attended and addressed:

Attended and represented Pakistan in international conferences, seminars and symposia held in Sri Lanka, India, Nepal, Canada, Tanzania, United Kingdom, Mauritius, Malaysia, Nigeria, Turkey, Scotland, Republic of Ireland, Bermuda, Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, United States of America, Japan, Italy, Tobago and Trinidad, Russia and Indonesia

Some other honours:

Visiting Professor Fellowship (2022-2023) of the Institute of Advanced Study / Warwick School of Law, University of Warwick, United Kingdom

Awarded the Administration of Justice Excellence Award, 2022 by the International Institute for Justice Excellence (IIJE), an international organization based in The Hague, The Netherlands (Holland)

A founding member of the SAARCLAW

Conferred Fellowship of the Commonwealth Judicial Education Institute, Halifax, Canada in 2006

Elected member of the Board of Directors of the Commonwealth Judicial Education Institute, Halifax, Canada since June 2008

Served as Chairman, Law & Justice Commission of Pakistan

Served as Chairman, Board of Governors of the Federal Judicial Academy, Islamabad, Pakistan

Served as Chairman, Judicial Commission of Pakistan

Served as Chairman, Supreme Judicial Council of Pakistan

Served as Chairman, Shariat Appellate Bench of the Supreme Court of Pakistan

Member of the International Jury of the All Parties Parliamentary Group of the British Parliament for selection for the Jinnah Award for Religious Tolerance

Remained a Member of the Rhodes Scholarship Selection Committee for Pakistan for about a decade