Talha Ilyas Sheikh

Talha Ilyas Sheikh is a UK-qualified Barrister and one of Pakistan‘s youngest Advocates of the Supreme Court. He obtained his LLB (Hons) from the University of London in 2014 and was called to the Bar of England and Wales by the Honourable Society of Lincoln‘s Inn in 2016. He is an accredited Mediator, Arbitrator, Digital Dispute Resolution Specialist (DDRS), and Member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (MCIArb).

He leads a team of barristers and advocates and heads the firm‘s litigation and advisory practice. He appears before trial courts, tribunals, High Courts, and the Supreme Court, representing corporations and public bodies in civil, commercial, corporate, constitutional, and arbitral matters.

His reported cases include Pak Gulf Construction v. Abdul Hameed Baig (2019 MLD 1178), where he overturned a multimillion-dollar arbitral award; Pak Gulf Construction v. Godwin Austen Johnson (2024 CLD 1451), clarifying the grounds for setting aside awards; Shaheen Chemist v. Zahid Mehmood Chaudhry (2023 CLD 1), defining IP Tribunal jurisdiction; and Jadeed Feeds Industries v. Board of Revenue Punjab (2025 CLD 587), resolving a corporate-merger dispute.

He has assisted courts in key ADR judgments, including PLD 2024 Lahore 545 on mandatory mediation, 2025 CLC 181 on enforcement of awards, and 2024 CLD 990 on judicial restraint in arbitration.

Talha serves as the Co-Chairperson of the ADR Committee of the High Court Bar Association, Rawalpindi, and as Advisor to the National Police Foundation on the establishment of its ADR Centre. In 2025, he convened Pakistan‘s first International ADR Symposium at the High Court level, bringing together international and local judges, academics, and policymakers to promote ADR and strengthen justice delivery. He also created the Pakistan Mediation Movement, a reform platform connecting the judiciary, bar, and academia to advance sustainable mediation. He speaks actively on legal reform, policy, and institutional development.

He has taught dispute resolution and legal writing at Fatima Jinnah Women University and collaborated with the Federal Judicial Academy for a training program for officers of the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan, as well as with Fulbright and Global Learning Online on legal education and ADR. He has been published in the Harvard Arbitration Blog and Corporate Law Digest, writing on arbitration, justice reform, and sustainable development.

He believes in disciplined advocacy, institutional reform, and service to the profession through law, learning, and leadership.