Kashmir-born barrister appointed immigration judge in UK

LONDON: A leading British Pakistani barrister who rose to fame winning a record number of human rights and immigration law cases in Britain’s higher courts has been appointed as Immigration Judge.

London High Court sources confirmed that Zane Malik has become judge of the First Tier Tribunal. Zane Malik, 32, was born in Azad Kashmir and attended school in Islamabad before moving to the UK. He then attended a primary school in East London, and went on to complete his LLB and LLM, before completing his post graduate qualifications in Legal Practice from Cardiff University. He also spent time at King’s College London for post graduate research in refugee law as a PhD candidate. He studied bar at the Lincoln’s Inn and started practicing as a Barrister at 12 Old Square Chambers, Lincoln’s Inn. He is currently practising as a Barrister from 39 Essex Chambers, which is one of the United Kingdom’s largest sets and is home to some of the most distinguished Judges and practitioners.

There are only few Pakistani-born lawyers working as judges in courts across England but Zane Malik becomes the first judge who was born in Azad Kashmir.

To his credit, Zane Malik has successfully conducted over 250 high profile leading cases in the courts, including the Supreme Court. He continues to act in cases against the Government but also acts for the Government in many cases. Mr Malik also has an established private practice where he offers his legal services. He regularly writes for Legal Journals, hosts lectures, conferences and contributes to a wide range of legal platforms.

In his capacity as a Barrister, Mr Malik regularly appears before the highest Courts in England and leads other barristers and legal teams in complex cases. Mr Malik’s other notable achievements include being appointed as a Barrister for the Government and the Crown. Over 250 of his cases have been reported and this means that the courts have considered such cases to be of great public importance.

Zane Malik leads cases with emphasis on immigration, asylum, nationality, EU and regulatory law and he is one of the Attorney General’s Panel Counsel to the Crown. He acts regularly at the highest levels, both for and against the government. Only two months ago, he represented the Home Office against a high profile immigration case brought to the court by a group of over 2000 professional immigrants from Pakistan, India and Bangladesh.