a full service law firm based in kabul, afghanistanistan has embarked on an ambitious agenda to...
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FIRM BROCHUREKakar Advocates is a full-service law firm based in Kabul with a liaison office in McLean, Virginia, and attorneys from Afghanistan, U.S., and Europe, well-positioned to represent
international and national clients.
WWW.KAKARADVOCATES.COM
A FULL SERVICELAW FIRMBASED IN
KABUL,AFGHANISTAN
INTERNATIONALLY QUALIFIED
GLOBALLY CONNECTED
LOCALLY INFORMED
Standout firm providing a wide range of commercial services, including tax, banking and labour advisory work for
foreign contractors and corporates. Also advises domestic clients, with solid expertise across sectors such
as aviation, telecommunications and mining.
Chambers Asia-Pacific, 2019
Page 1 | FIRM BROCHURE
FIRM OVERVIEWLike many post-conflict countries, Afghanistan presents a complex environment with exceptional opportunities and daunting challenges. For national and international businesses, foreign missions, international organizations, non-governmental organizations, and defense contrac-tors, navigating this unfamiliar legal landscape can be perilous.
Established in 2013, Kakar Advocates has the expertise and experience to provide a broad range of services to as-sist you in establishing and managing your operations on a sound legal foundation and to guide you successfully in dealing with challenges and obstacles that may arise.
Our team consists of a number of international attorneys, locally licensed practitioners, tax and corporate consul-tants, as well as Afghan Government relations specialists. Members of our team have held prominent positions in the public and private sectors, including distinguished law firms, financial institutions, private companies, as well as the Afghan Government, United Nations, and other inter-national institutions.
Our comprehensive grasp of laws and regulations per-taining to conducting business in Afghanistan enables the firm to offer exceptional, specialized legal services to a broad range of clientele. This deep knowledge base, cou-pled with our close engagement with Afghan and interna-tional institutions, enables us to help our clients conduct Afghan commercial affairs confidently and safely.
Kakar Advocates has been ranked as a Band 1 Law Firm by Chambers and Partners since 2017 and recognized as Top Law Firm in Afghanistan by The Legal 500 organiza-tion. The firm also received the International Stability Op-erations Association’s (ISOA) prestigious 2019 Vanguard Award. Similarly, the firm’s Managing Partner and other lawyers have received (top/high ranked) international rec-ognition.
At Kakar Advocates,
CLIENTS COME FIRST.We work hard so that you focus
on your core businesses and responsibilities.
As a leading Afghan firm, we closely monitor develop-ments in Afghanistan’s evolving legal and regulatory en-vironment, regularly publish legal guides, and speak on legal reforms and practices at national and international conferences. In particular, the firm has published compre-hensive practice guides for Chambers and Partners in the key areas of mining, employment law, and public procure-ment and government contracts.
Kakar Advocates has a strategic alliance with DLA Pip-er, an elite global law firm with lawyers in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. This alliance enables us to offer clients comprehensive local expertise combined with global reach and expertise. Ka-kar Advocates has also worked with a number of highly respected regional and major law firms in the U.S., Eu-rope, Central Asia, South-East Asia and the Middle East including Norton Rose Fulbright, Mayer Brown, Baker & McKenzie, Bird & Bird, Wilmer Hale, Allen & Overy, and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer to offer the best solutions for our clients.
We assist our clients in a comprehensive set of services across many sectors, ranging from simple tasks such as setting up or restructuring corporate entities, monthly tax compliance, to advice on complex projects such as power purchase agreements, commercial contracts, tax appeals and litigation in court. Kakar Advocates’ experi-ence encompasses aviation, corporate, mining, energy, oil and gas, labor and employment, dispute resolution, bank-ing and finance, consumer protection and privacy, public procurement, telecommunications, and tax and customs matters.
With our head office in Kabul and a client liaison office in McLean, Virginia, Kakar Advocates is uniquely positioned to assist you with all of your business requirements and needs.
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One of Kakar Advocate’s core services is assisting our clients structure their businesses in line with regulations and market dynamics in Afghanistan. We provide legal advice and rep-resentation in connection with the choice, incorporation and corporate maintenance of private businesses including part-nerships, subsidiaries, branches and representative offices of foreign corporations.
Our team of corporate legal specialists work closely with our clients at all stages of business life cycle. The Firm has drafted and negotiated wide array of commercial agreements for local and international clients, including partnerships and joint ven-tures, agency contracts, sub-contracts, strategic alliances, lease agreements and insurance contracts.
We provide advice that is pragmatic and realistic, always in the context of the current and upcoming regulatory and compli-ance requirement.
PRACTICE AREAS
CORPORATE
EMPLOYMENT & LABOR
TAXATION
GLOBAL CORPORATE MOBILITY
PUBLIC PROCUREMENT
PUBLIC PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP
BANKING
MINING, OIL & GAS
AVIATION
INTERNATIONAL TRADE
TELECOMMUNICATION
MERGERS & AQUISITIONS
CRIMINAL LAW
ALTERNATIVE DISPUTE RESOLUTION
PRO-BONO & COMMUNITY SERVICE
CORPORATE EMPLOYMENT & LABOR TAXATION
To assure compliance with national laws and international legal norms, Kakar Advocates provides businesses, national and in-ternational organizations, embassies, governments at all levels, and individuals operating in Afghanistan with expert assistance on employment and labor issues.
We provide the following range of services to both companies and employees:
■ Advise on employment contracts and policies as per Afghanistan’s labor law and regulations.■ Advice regarding and processing of foreign workers entry requirements in Afghanistan, including business visa and work permits.■ Representation in-front of labour boards, state institutions and courts.■ Advise on regulatory requirement, including overtime, termination pay, maternity leaves, wages claims and general employment complaints and proceedings.■ Advise on and draft confidentiality agreements.■ Advise on statutory compliance related to health, safety and workers’ compensation.
In line with our commitment to provide reliable and cost effec-tive services to our clients, Kakar Advocates offers integrated and specialized tax advisory and legal services to businesses. Our team of attorneys and tax experts draw on international expertise and industry specific knowledge.
We provide our clients insights to complement tax regulatory compliance with commercial competitiveness. Our extensive experience and expertise in Afghanistan’s tax system enables our clients to structure their businesses in tax efficient manner and manage their tax liabilities, including tax penalties. We min-imize compliance costs and reduce uncertainty by effectively assessing and advocating on behalf of our clients.
We have established a dedicated tax advisory division which is overseen by international and local tax specialists.
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PUBLIC PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP
The Government of Afghanistan has embarked on an ambi-tious development agenda, including Public Private Partner-ships (PPPs) in particular for major infrastructure projects.Kakar Advocates takes pride that together with the global elite firm, DLA-Piper, it was involved in review and drafting of the amendment to PPP regulation. Our attorneys have also worked as senior legal advisers in the Ministry of Justice and the Min-istry of Finance and as such have been intimately involved in the most significant legal and policy issues, including the de-velopment of the PPP legal structure. Further, our extensive experience with market participants enables us to mitigate administrative and legal issues for complex PPP projects from the early developmental phase to mobilization and implemen-tation phases.
GLOBAL CORPORATE MOBILITY
Our firm has helped international and local companies over-come legal obstacles in securing visas and obtaining work and residency permits.
We have facilitated high volumes of inter and intra company personnel transfers in Afghanistan. We help manage compa-nies’ immigration requirements in ways that avoid risk across enterprises and ensures complete compliance with all Afghan laws and regulations. We assist in both the pre- and post-trans-fer stages to help ensure employment contracts are complete and enforceable, and employee benefits comply with Afghan law.
PUBLIC PROCUREMENT
Public procurement system in Afghanistan has evolved from a basic system with no regulation to a tightly regulated system in line with international standards.
In recognizing the centrality of a functional public procurement system to a developing economy, the Government of Afghan-istan has embarked on an ambitious agenda to reform and reorganize an equitable and transparent public procurement system. As a result, public procurement is an area of critical fo-cus for the government, international financiers, media and the general public.
BANKING
The banking sector is developing rapidly in Afghanistan. The financial institutions in general, however, face a wide range of strategic, operational and legal challenges, in particular evolving regulatory standards and sometimes lax corporate governance structure. To stay competitive, financial institutions need to improve capacity for effective compliance with regulations. With our extensive knowledge of national banking regulation and our multi- jurisdictional capabilities, we are well positioned to help finan-cial institutions deal effectively and creatively with regulatory and compliance related issues.
Kakar advocates is well equipped to provide banks and non-banking financial institutions (NBFIs) the appropriate legal support they need to thrive. Our attorneys have in-depth expertise in virtually all aspect of banking law, including crafting specific policies and procedures, designing formal structures for corporate governance, structuring syndicated debt transactions and engineering capital acquisitions.
Our team has had substantial engagement with Afghanistan banking sector since the Firm’s inception. Our Managing Partner has served as the Chairman of the Board of Supervisors for a state-owned commercial bank and we have actively collaborated with Central Bank on a number of assignments such as development of statutory architecture for Islamic Banking and Sharia compliant products in Afghanistan as well as provided legal service on resolution of disputes.
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For the first time in its long and eventful history, Afghanistan has the opportunity to transform its vast mineral and hydro-carbon resources into wealth for its current and future gener-ations. The Government of Afghanistan is striving to convert the nation’s mineral wealth through private investments into substantial financial capital for sustainable economic develop-ment. The Government has introduced targeted legal and pol-icy reforms to open up the sector for large scale investments, such as:
■ Enactment of new Minerals and Hydrocarbon Law.■ Regulations for mining, hydrocarbon, environmental impact assessment.■ Implementation of Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, the global standards for mining.■ Implementation of Afghanistan Resources Corridor Project.
MINING, OIL & GAS AVIATION INTERNATIONAL TRADE
The civil aviation sector is one of the main drivers of growth and mobility through safe and efficient transportation of goods and people especially in landlocked country such as Afghani-stan. The Afghan government with support from international technical assistance has achieved major progress in the reha-bilitation and modernization of aviation sector. That develop-ment, however, is hampered by multiple regulatory, adminis-trative, commercial challenges, such as increased competition, over-capacity, security concerns and rising operating and com-pliance costs.
Attorneys at Kakar Advocates provide unparalleled legal ser-vices to domestic and international operators in the aviation industry. We represent clients operating in commercial airports in Afghanistan in a broad range of commercial, regulatory and litigation matters. We combine our deep knowledge of aviation sector and our legal expertise to develop legal solutions.
Kakar Advocates is one of the few firms in Afghanistan with ac-tive and specialized practice for international trade. We provide legal services in the following trade matters:
■ Guidance on customs information entry process.■ Valuation, country of origin determination of goods and equipment.■ Draft and filling of petitions for drawbacks and duty exemptions and deferrals.■ Draft and filling of petitions for liquidated damages and penalties.■ Export management system and compliance protocols.■ Filling and facilitating export license, application and negotiation.■ Advising on tariff classification, rules of origin and marking on mandatory custom valuation.
TELECOMMUNICATION
Afghanistan has vibrant telecommunication sector, which has expanded rapidly since 2002. The Afghan government and corpo-rations need to change and innovate quickly and aggressively to stay competitive in today’s telecommunications and Internet of environment. Major disruptors are changing the rules of the game on a daily basis. Traditional customer models are being dis-in-termediated, and core businesses are coming under threat. “Change and innovation” is the new steady state – and the speed of change is critical to a corporation’s competitiveness. Our team is led by a Technology Media Telecommunication specialist who has worked with top tier firms in Australia and works closely with our clients to maximize the opportunities of digital transforma-tion, and enable them to become agile, intelligent, digital businesses.
We are passionate TMT specialists, and we have built a leading reputation across multiple industries. We have deep expertise in regulatory and compliance – including privacy and security requirements, and industry – specific regulations – this is a critical factor in our ability to develop integrated corporate and government frameworks that address these challenges in new cloud-based environments.
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ALTERNATIVE DISPUTE RESOLUTION
In almost every business relationship there is the potential for conflict over contractual agreements or businesses. Litigation can prove time consuming and costly, and a trial success may not be best way to resolve disputes. Further, many contractu-al agreements these days require dispute be resolved through Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) mechanisms in one of the reputable international centers located in Dubai, Singapore, Hong Kong, London or the United States.
Our attorneys have been involved in several high profile com-plex cases of international arbitration. The clients have includ-ed both private and public sector entities. In such cases, we collaborate with our international partners with specialization in ADR as local counsel.
MERGERS & AQUISITIONS
Our Mergers and Acquisitions services focus on legal solutions for corporate restructuring and transactions. Kakar Advocates, with the collaboration of our international partners, has been involved in several major and complex mergers and acquisition transactions. We have also executed cross-border mergers and acquisition deals and supported our clients during all stages of the legal processes.
We carefully select groups for each particular matter which allows us to handle all aspects of complex domestic and cross-border corporate transactions with the maximum benefit and efficiency for our clients. The combined local and interna-tional experience of our attorneys enable them to flag potential issues, and recommend legal and practical solutions.
CRIMINAL LAW
We defend both local and international clients in the Afghan criminal courts and other investigative and regulatory institu-tions. Our attorneys have represented some of the most dif-ficult cases involving investigations, prevention of arrest and seizure, and criminalization of commercial disputes. Our highly qualified attorneys, licensed by Afghan Independent Bar Asso-ciation will represent you throughout the process.
We also advise on international criminal law issues, anti-money laundering, Foreign Corrupt Practices Act compliance, and sto-len asset recovery.
PRO-BONO & COMMUNITY SERVICE
Giving back to our community is important at Kakar Advocates. While each attorney is required by the Afghan Bar Association to handle three cases per year for indigents, we encourage and support our local attorneys to handle more.
Our lawyers provide services to those in need according to the attorneys’ skills, background, and experience.
Kakar Advocates has a strategic alliance with DLA Piper, a global elite law firm with lawyers in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia Pacific. The alliance enables both firms to jointly market for work and to offer clients deep local expertise combined with global reach and expertise making us ideal for complex situations.
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Our team provides specialized training to help your organiza-tion increase its capacity and achieve its strategic goals. Our inter-disciplinary team has experts who led teams in large or-ganizations such as UNDP and USAID.Training is available in a broad range of subject areas, including:
■ Legal Awareness and Representation Training■ Legislative drafting
CONSULTANCIESCAPACITY-BUILDING & TRAINING
LEGISLATIVE MONITORING
CAPACITY-BUILDING & TRAINING LEGISLATIVE MONITORING ACCESS TO JUSTICE
Afghanistan has a functioning judiciary with over 2,000 judg-es, an attorney general office with nearly 5,000 prosecutors, an effective bar association with more than 3,000 lawyers, a Na-tional Assembly with 1/3 female representatives, and a vibrant civil society empowered to work along side of the government.However, majority of the civil society organizations are focused on community building and service delivery, with very few of them working on public policy, rule of law reform, advocacy and more importantly on legislative process.
Access to justice is defined as the ability of people to seek and obtain a remedy through formal or informal institutions of jus-tice for grievances in compliance with human rights standards. Our attorneys have established and led legal aid organizations providing legal advice and representation to those who could not afford it. Our attorneys are providing legal training on a wide variety of subjects to young law graduates to improve their le-gal skills.
JUDICIAL REFORMS
Our team of experts can also assist ju-dicial bodies conduct revision of court rules, establish court-annexed arbitra-tion, and develop updated case man-agement and tracking systems.
We can assist in drafting terms of ref-erence for judicial reform projects and alternative dispute resolution projects. Our attorneys also have experience in mapping and analysis of governmental and judicial systems.
REGULATORY & STRATEGIC ADVISORY
Kakar Advocates maintains an active legal practice, providing top legal ad-visers to government agencies and the development community. We keep track of Afghanistan’s ever changing regulatory and legal developments. This enables us to advise our clients on how to plan their medium and long-term strategies. Our liaison with institutions, government offices and community leaders allows us to assist our clients effectively.
ACCESS TO JUSTICE
JUDICIAL REFORMS
REGULATORY &
STRATEGIC ADVISORY
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MEETOUR TEAM
KAWUN KAKARFounder & Managing [email protected]
THOMAS KRAEMERSenior Counsel
AHMAD BASSAMHead of External Affairs
Banking and Finance [email protected]
Kawun Kakar is an active member of the California Bar Association with extensive experience as attorney, private sector execu-tive, and senior government official, working with both national and international institu-tions in Afghanistan, the United States and the United Arab Emirates.
Tom Kraemer is an American lawyer special-izing in complex commercial matters. Tom has been practicing law since 1990, and has represented clients ranging from startups to Fortune 500 companies. He has extensive experience in contracts, intellectual property, antitrust, class actions, media, privacy, con-sumer protection, and employment matters.
Ahmad Bassam holds Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Universi-ty of Phoenix and Masters in Economics & Finance from Harvard University. He is an experienced finance professional who has spent the entirety of his post-collegiate ca-reer in the investment banking and invest-ment management sector in New York, Lon-don, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Dubai and Kabul.
KHALID MOHAMMADISenior Associate
Khalid Mohammadi works as a Senior Asso-ciate Attorney at Kakar Advocates where he advises international clients regarding busi-ness registration, share transfer, business dissolution, business merger and closure. He is also involved in legislative drafting, con-tracts, and represents national and interna-tional clients in courts of the country.
DOROTHY MAZAKABusiness Development Manager
Dorothy Mazaka has over 25 years of inter-national stabilization and development ex-perience in the Middle East and Afghanistan excelling in cultivating strategic partnerships with US and regional Government stake-holders, UN agencies, NGOs, private sector firms, technical organizations, universities, military, and multilateral institutions achiev-ing tangible business and economic devel-
SALEEM ALKOZAIHead of Government [email protected]
Saleem Alkozai is a multifaceted and highly experienced Head of Government Relations. He is trained in managing large-scale do-nor-funded development, capacity building and reform projects for the government of Afghanistan. Mr. Alkozai adds value to the team through his outstanding interdisciplin-ary knowledge and extensive work experi-ence in Afghanistan, coupled with his strong
FIRM BROCHURE | Page 8
Our team is comprised of internationally trained attorneys, Afghan attorneys, tax and corporate consultants, as well as Afghan government relations specialists.
They have held important positions in the public and private sectors, including with the government of Afghanistan, law firms and international organizations.
The attorneys are active members of a bar association in a jurisdiction either in U.S. or Afghanistan.
Our attorneys are uniquely positioned to provide a broad range of specialized legal services to international and domestic clients.
They have also worked in key positions, such as:
■ Advisor to the Afghan President■ Deputy chief of staff to the Afghan President■ Advisor to the Afghan Minister of Justice■ Chairman of the Supervisory Board of a commercial bank■ As U.S. diplomat in the Middle East
ABDUL WAHAB SADATAssociate Attorney
Sayed Abdul Wahab Sadat joined Kakar Ad-vocates in 2018 as an Associate Attorney. Wahab’s practice areas include, Taxation Law, Criminal law, Civil Law, Land Develop-ment Law, and Labor and Employment Law. Previously, Wahab worked at a private law firm in Kabul, where he represented clients at all stages before the Afghan Courts and the Attorney General’s Office.
HENAA SALEHIAssociate Attorney
Henaa Salehi recently joined Kakar Advo-cates as an Associate Attorney. Ms. Salehi graduated from the Law and Political Science faculty of Kabul University in 2016. During her university years, she represented Kabul University in the prestigious Willem C. Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot Court competition. She has also coached law teams in moot courts and judged for (in-
HELAY KHWAJAZADAAssociate Attorney
Helay Khwajazada joined Kakar Advocates in 2018 as an Associate Attorney. Helay’s practice areas include Labor Law, Contract Law, Family Law, Company Law, Intellectual Property Law, Criminal Law, Civil Law, and International Law. Previously, Helay lived in Pune where she was interning at Hariani & Co. Advocates and Solicitors Pune branch.
HAMIDULLAH AMIRYSenior Legal Advisor
SABAWUN KAKARBusiness Development Executive
WASEEM SHAH YOUSAFZAIFinancial & Tax Director
Hamidullah Amiry has joined Kakar Ad-vocates as Senior Legal Advisor. He most recently served as General Counsel and Di-rector of the Secretariat to the Central Bank of Afghanistan. During his tenure as General Counsel of the Central Bank of Afghanistan, Judge, Legal Advisor to the Ministry of Com-merce and Industries, Ministry of Justice and the Office of Oversight and Anti-Corruption
Sabawun Kakar has more than 12 years of experience in the field of business manage-ment, including business communication, Fi-nance, client relations, market research, event management, among others in Afghanistan and the US. Previously, Mr. Kakar was the CEO of a construction/concrete business in Kabul, where he supervised about 40 staff members and supervised the financial and administrative aspects of the company.
Waseem Shah Yosafzai holds B.B.A honours (Specialization in Finance) from University of Peshawar. He has also earned several cer-tifications such as Certified Financial Con-sultant-Canada (CFC), Project Management diploma, ERP Certification. Mr. Yosafzai is currently in the process of obtaining his Cer-tificate from Association of Charter Certified Accountants (ACCA). Mr. Yosafzai began his
OURGLOBAL REACH
& MAJOR CLIENTS
International law firms that we have worked with
KAKAR ADVOCATES
+93 783 300 [email protected] Naw, Kabul, Afghanistan
Copyright © 2017 Kakar Advocates LLC. All rights reserved | SEP17
Kakar Advocates LLC is staffed by a diverse mix of local and foreign
lawyers, with former US diplomats and former advisers to the Afghan
government on hand to assist clients....The firm regularly acts for NGOs, multinational corporations
and foreign embassies.
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