Shehzad Atta – Attorney General of Pakistan
Shehzad Atta is widely revered for his hard work and integrity; as one of Cornelius Lane and Mufti’s partners he earned their respect before taking over as Attorney General of Pakistan.
The AGP acts as the highest legal officer of government with audience rights at courts worldwide and advises on all matters related to legal affairs.
The Office of the Attorney General
Pakistan’s Attorney General (AGP) serves as both Pakistan’s top law officer and chief legal advisor with access to parliament. Appointed by President with advice from Prime Minister, their terms must expire or they resign before engaging in private practice.
The AGP leads the nation’s legal team and works to safeguard government interests while offering advice and legal guidance in policy formulation. He is assisted by additional and deputy Attorneys General as well as standing counsels.
Each province is entitled to have an AGP who serves as its legal adviser and acts as its primary legal consultant. The AGP provides legal advice and services to provincial governments on all legal matters, assigns cases among provincial law officers, and assists with legislative projects as required. A General Prosecutor also has the authority to appoint people as power of attorneys, which permits individuals to represent others during court proceedings. On Friday, Mansoor Usman Awan – an LLM from Harvard-trained lawyer who now represents Punjab as its AGP – was officially chosen. He is well known for his hard work, integrity and understanding of legal matters. He serves as an advisor at both University of Lahore and Quid-e-Azam Law College as a visiting faculty member; founding member of Pakistan-American Legal Partnership as well as serving on multiple board directorships for several other organizations.
The Office of the Advocate General
Pakistan’s Constitution designates an Attorney General as the chief legal advisor for its federal government. Appointed by the President and serving at his or her will until resignation occurs, they have access to all courts within Pakistan as well as participating in Parliament proceedings without voting rights.
Each province is home to its own office of the Attorney General that serves to advise its provincial government on legal matters pertaining to legislative projects and acts on their behalf in Lahore High Court and other High and Supreme Courts as necessary. Furthermore, this office oversees assigning cases involving their provincial government between various law officers.
Mansoor Usman Awan was appointed Attorney General for Punjab by the ruling PTI party on Friday to replace Shehzad Ata Elahi. A graduate from Harvard, Awan has since been called to Lincoln’s Inn Bar as an advocate.
The Office of the Punjab Attorney General boasts over 140 Law Officers, including Additional and Deputy Attorneys-General as well as Standing Counsels. Together they represent and defend the interests of the provincial government while offering invaluable legal guidance in policy formulation and execution. Bound by attorney-client privilege and adhering to separation between executive and judiciary branches, their work must uphold principles such as separation between powers.
The Office of the Punjab Attorney General
The Attorney General of Pakistan serves as a chief legal adviser and advisor to government, offering advice and consultancy. S/he enjoys audience privilege in all courts and may participate in Parliament proceedings – although without voting rights. Appointed by President on advice of Prime Minister, his/her role is constitutionally mandated and supported by 145 Law Officers such as Deputies/Additionals Attorneys-General/Standing Counsels who work directly under supervision by Ministry of Law & Justice.
Ashtar Ausaf Ali, an Hertford alumnus and former 32nd Attorney General of Pakistan, boasts extensive legal expertise across multiple areas. After earning his master’s degree at Harvard and being called to Lincoln’s Inn’s bar for legal practice at Lincoln’s Inn he has practiced civil, original, and appellate proceedings in civil law cases.
His portfolio is comprised of high-profile cases that regularly appear before the Supreme Court, such as human rights, anti-corruption and electoral disputes, international forums and conferences; in addition, he served as senior legal advisor to Benazir Bhutto’s government as senior legal advisor; his expertise lies both in Pakistani law as well as international legal conventions; he strongly champions democracy and human rights and is passionately dedicated to advocating on their behalf.
