High Court Happenings

The Lahore High Court from Outside

Stacks of files containing details of pending cases, a mad rush of people in and out, and a sea of lawyers clad in black and white. This was the scene I witnessed yesterday as I made my way to the Lahore High Court. The LHC is the oldest high court in Pakistan, established formally in 1919 by King George V, King of England and Emperor of India until World War I.  The firm that I will be interning for, Kazmi and Kazmi, invited me to go to the High Court to witness firsthand the busy atmosphere of a court and hear lawyers presenting actual cases. I don’t officially start my internship until Wednesday, but going to the court gave me a good introduction to the Pakistani legal system. During my internship I will be working alongside the associates at Kazmi and Kazmi and assisting them in the preparation of cases.  This will definitely teach me the legal frameworks of Pakistan and introduce me to the responsibilities and duties all lawyers have, no matter what country they are practicing law in. Going to the courts will give me exposure to the actual implementation of these cases, giving me the best of both worlds.

The Lahore High Court from Inside  

The atmosphere of the Lahore High Court was fascinating. Justice Ijaz Ul Ahsan was overseeing the room I was invited to observe. The esteemed Justice was incredibly eloquent, composed, and coolheaded, despite the large number of cases he was hearing that day.  I had the opportunity to observe a couple of different cases, all of which were thought-provoking in their own unique way. The topics of the cases ranged from issues in Customs to the dealings in the Lahore Stock Exchange.  They were mostly commercial/corporate cases, which was interesting to me because I am very much undecided about what type of law I want to go into and this allowed me to see one specific field of law in action. 

I am planning on going to the Pakistan Supreme Court—which is located in the country’s capital, Islamabad—soon also, and I’m eager to see how that court functions. It is obviously on a much larger and grander scale and the cases there deal mostly with public interest issues, which I look forward to hearing.

I’m having a WONDERFUL time here, exploring the city, the delicious food, and of course the law of Lahore. Hope everyone is having an equally enjoyable summer! Missing everyone terribly!!

-Mahnoor 

Me in my High Court uniform of a white shalwar kameez,
standing outside my grandparent's house 

Another View of the High Court