Five ways to build a successful career in arbitration

Komal Anwar/April, 2021 Back in 2016, while I was working at a litigation law firm in Karachi, my boss assigned me a research project which involved research and analysis of issues related to challenging the validity of an arbitration agreement. While I was intrigued by the subject, I lacked extensive knowledge of the relevant issues.  In order to acquaint myself with these issues, I started reading several text books, case law and articles to understand how arbitration works and the ways in which an invalid arbitration agreement could be challenged successfully. Although our application to challenge was unsuccessful, I was enthralled and found the entire learning experience very rewarding. A year later, I left Pakistan to study for a Master of Laws at the London School of Economics and Political Science, in London, aiming to specialise in international arbitration. This is when my learning journey in the exciting field of international arbitration began: not only was I able to deepen my knowledge and understanding of international arbitration, I was also able to witness first-hand how arbitration proceedings are conducted, by observing international arbitration proceedings at the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA). Following the conclusion of my Master of Laws, I returned to Pakistan, and decided to write a book on arbitration which was published on 1 November 2019, while working as an associate at Haidermota & Co and then Fazleghani Advocates. Having   authored a book, and published several articles on arbitration, and a private practitioner in Pakistan, I wanted to share some of my top tips for young professionals who are looking to build a successful career in arbitration: