ROKANUDDIN MAHMUD

Barrister Rokanuddin Mahumd is one of the foremost personalities in the legal community of Bangladesh. Born on 14 July 1946 in Chittagong, Barrister Mahmud obtained his M.A. and LL.B degrees from the University of Dhaka in 1967 before leaving for the United kingdom in 1968 for studying for the Bar. He was called to the Bar at Lincoln’s Inn in 1972 and became enrolled as Advocate with the Bangladesh Bar council in 1973. In 1976,Barrister Mahmud obtained an LL.M with Cum Laude in International and Comparative Law from the University of Brussels in Belgium.

Barrister Mahmud began his practice in 1975 in the Supreme Court of Bangladesh as an associate of the late Barrister Syed Ishtiaque Ahmed, before commencing his independent practice in 1980. He became a Senior Advocate in 1994. Over the past three and half decades, he has established a reputation as one of the leading Advocates of Bangladesh, specializing in constitutional and corporate law. Barrister Mahmud has appeared in numerous important cases of constitutional significance before both the Appellate and High Court Divisions of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh, and is regularly called upon by different Benches of the court to provide his counsel as an Amicus Curie or “Friend of the Court”.

Barrister Mahmud has been a member of the international Court of Arbitration of the ICC in Paris (2000-2005). He has appeared as counsel in several international arbitrations and investment disputes, including arbitrations under the auspices of the International Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) and the ICC Court of Arbitration.

Barrister Mahmud was elected as the president of the Supreme Court Bar Association for two successive terms (2003-2004 and 2004-2005) and as the vice Chairman of the Bangladesh Bar Council (2004-2007). He was also a member of the Bangladesh Bar Council between 2001 and 2004. His role as a leader of the Bar in protecting the independence of the judiciary, fighting corruption and unwarranted political influence within the legal system and upholding the dignity and reputation of the legal profession has been particularly lauded and publicized in the national print and electronic news media. Renowned and widely respected for his articulate and forthright views on issues of constitutional and political issues of national significance, Barrister Mahmud’s comments are frequently quoted by the  media, and he regularly appears as a guest in talk shows and news and current affairs programs on television.