Malik Imtiaz Sarwar > Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia > Firm Profile

Malik Imtiaz Sarwar
No. 4, Dalaman Tunku,
Bukit Tunku
Kuala Lumpur 50480
Malaysia

Email firm Visit website 60 6211 3883 60 6211 0883

Malaysia > Dispute resolution Tier 3

Malik Imtiaz Sarwar

leads the specialist disputes practice at Malik Imtiaz Sarwar and is well-known for his 'strategic acumen'. The firm is frequently engaged by clients across industries and handles a range of complex and high-value commercial, civil, and administrative issues. Recently, the team has provided advice on telecoms, competition law, and commercial fraud matters. Lim Yvonne is a notable member within the team and is recognised for her commercial disputes expertise.

Hall of Fame

Malik Imtiaz Sarwar

- Malik Imtiaz Sarwar

Practice head(s):

Malik Imtiaz Sarwar

Other key lawyers:

Lim Yvonne; Khoo Suk Chyi; Wong Min Yen

Testimonials

‘Malik Imtiaz Sarwar is almost always our lead counsel of choice for major cases. The most unique feature of the firm is the attention Malik Imtiaz Sarwar personally gives to the matters he is instructed upon. Drawing from the wealth of legal knowledge and his sharp intelligence, he produces a smart and pragmatic litigation strategy.’

‘Lim Yvonne, Khoo Suk Chyi, and Wong Min Yen are the backbone of the complex work. They are always available and very supportive of instructing solicitors.’

‘Malik Imtiaz Sarwar’s strategic acumen and knowledge of law is unparalleled. His team works very quickly and efficiently.’

‘Our experience with Lim Yvonne and Khoo Suk Chyi has been very good. Both are extremely intelligent, and they are able to distill complex factual scenarios into easily digestible scenarios when presenting matters to the court.’

‘Fantastic lawyers, very approachable, and extremely hard working.’

‘Malik Imtiaz Sarwar is a brilliant lawyer who is able to get on top of complex issues quickly. He is the go-to lawyer in the Malaysian jurisdiction.’

Key clients

Bank Kerjasama Rakyat Malaysia Bhd

Berjaya Land Berhad

Dagang NeXchange Berhad

Dato’ Sri Andrew Kam Tai Yeow

Datuk Sundra Rajoo a/l Nadarajah

Detik Ria Sdn Bhd and Tan Sri Datuk Abdul Rahim bin Haji Din

Extradition (Wong Ong Hua)

Haris Fathillah bin Mohd Ibrahim, Nur Ain binti Mustapa, Sreekant a/l M G Gangadharan Pillai

Hisham Halim (JR and FC Contempt)

JP Morgan

MyTeksi Sdn Bhd, Grabcar Sdn Bhd, Grab Inc.

Ng Yee Hong (Deloitte)

Pavilion Integrity Sdn Bhd

Penang State Legislative Assembly

Sacofa Sdn Bhd

Serba Dinamik Holdings Bhd and 3 subsidiaries

Tan Sri Harris bin Mohd Salleh

Work highlights

Acted as solicitors and counsel for JP Morgan (Switzerland) Ltd (JPMS) to challenge the jurisdiction of the Malaysian Court over JPMS in respect of a claim filed by 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) for dishonest assistance in relation to breaches of fiduciary duties by 1MDB’s former director and employee.
Acted for Serba Dinamik Holding Bhd (SD) and its three subsidaries in its appeals against orders of the High Court dismissing SD’s applications for adjournment of winding-up petitions, and orders of the High Court winding-up the said companies on the ground that the companies were unable to pay its debts.
Acted as lead counsel for MyTeksi Sdn Bhd, Grabcar Sdn Bhd, and Grab Inc. (collectively, “GRAB”) in a judicial review application filed against a decision by the Malaysia Competition Commission to issue a proposed decision to GRAB under the Competition Act 2010.

The firm: The firm was established by Malik Imtiaz Sarwar in 1997 and has developed into one of the country’s leading litigation practices, operating predominantly as a counsel’s practice. With about 20 years’ experience at the Bar, Malik Imtiaz is recognised as a lawyer’s lawyer and is one of Malaysia’s leading litigators, being regularly briefed in complex matters before the Federal Court (the apex court), the Court of Appeal and the High Court in a diverse range of practice areas. He leads his practice with the support of three assisting junior counsel and two pupils. The firm’s close working relationship with instructing solicitors allows for a rigorous and concentrated approach to the disputes the firm is briefed on.

The firm’s main practice areas are civil and commercial disputes, as well as matters of public and constitutional law. Malik Imtiaz has appeared as counsel in more than 200 reported decisions in a wide range of matters, a significant number of which were handed down in landmark or precedent setting cases. The firm’s diverse clients include corporations, corporate bodies and individuals in the public and private spheres. The firm has been given fiats to act for two Malaysian state governments in connection with multimillion-ringgit disputes.

Malik Imtiaz holds an MA (with distinction) from the University of Hong Kong (Taufik Ali Memorial Scholar) and an MA in international human rights law at Oxford University (with distinction) (Chevening Scholar). He was called to the Malaysian Bar in 1994, having read law at the International Islamic University. He has served on the Malaysian Bar Council and was the president of the National Human Rights Society (HAKAM) from 2006-2012. He is an opinion leader in the field of democracy and the rule of law, for which he was awarded the Index on Censorship, Freedom of Expression Award (for Legal Advocacy) in 2009. Malik Imtiaz currently serves as a member of the Penang Pardons Board, a constitutional body that advises the Governor of the Malaysian state of Penang on applications for pardons and clemency.

Areas of practice: Corporate litigation, including: shareholder disputes, directors’ duties, corporate fraud and actions under the Companies Act 1965; civil litigation, including: banking/capital markets, media law and defamation, contractual claims, torts, insurance, claims against governments, and human rights; administrative law, including commercial judicial review; white-collar crime; constitutional law; and alternative dispute resolution.