Sarwat is the Chairman and Founding Partner of Shahid Law Firm and a former judge and Counselor of the Egyptian State Council (Conseil d’Etat). Sarwat is admitted before the Courts of Cassation and the Constitutional Courts and is a registered patent attorney. He specializes in a wide array of legal fields including corporate investment, commercial law, banking, capital markets and securities, insurance, mergers and acquisitions, taxation, intellectual property, civil law, employment, construction, real estate and mortgage, environmental law, and maritime and free zone regulations, along with local and international litigation and arbitration.
Since transitioning into private practice in 1987, Sarwat has provided legal counsel on mergers and acquisitions, public securities offerings, corporate finance, restructuring, securitization, investments, estate and tax planning, and insurance. His expertise spans multiple industries, including pharmaceuticals and healthcare, banking and finance, construction and real estate, infrastructure projects (BOT and BOOT), logistics, oil and gas, and renewable energy.
With almost forty years of experience in contentious and complex legal matters, Sarwat has represented clients in litigation and arbitration across all levels of Egyptian courts, focusing on enforcing foreign judgments and arbitral awards. He is a regularly appointed arbitrator at the Cairo Regional Center for International Commercial Arbitration (CRCICA) and is actively engaged in the Egyptian business community. Additionally, he is frequently appointed as an expert in various English courts and was included in the list of arbitrators recommended by the Ministry of Justice in 2017.
Selected Representative Matters
Expert Witness
- Providing expert opinions in high-profile cases under Egyptian law, including ICSID arbitration, English, Greek, and Italian courts.
- Serving as an expert witness on different aspects of Egyptian law before US and UK courts including but not limited to investment, media, and real estate and family laws.
- Notable cases involved financial remedies, class suits, and maritime disputes with successful outcomes.
Appointments as Arbitrator
- Co-arbitrator and tribunal chair in multi-million USD disputes governed by the CRCICA rules.
- Involvement in cases concerning agency agreements, transportation contracts, asset purchases, and telecom facility installations under FIDIC Turnkey contracts.
Notable Arbitration Activities
Investor/State Disputes
- Acting as co-counsel in multi-billion-dollar gas disputes (ICSID and PCA cases).
- Representing claimants in disputes like Hussain Sejwani & DAMAC and Middle East Cement Shipping before ICSID.
Construction and Real Estate Disputes
- Counsel in disputes involving dredging, construction, and real estate projects, with notable settlements and favorable awards.
- Key cases include disputes over City Stars Complex construction and major development projects in Cairo
Commercial Disputes
- Representing clients in gas sales, hotel management, broadcasting, and automotive disputes, achieving settlements and awards.
- Addressing quasi-class action claims in Egypt’s oil and gas sector, with constitutional law implications.
Sarwat is a member of the American and International Bar Associations and is a Board Member of many multinational joint venture companies in Egypt as well as of the Board of Directors of various leading Egyptian companies.
Sarwat received an LL.B. and an LL.M. in Public Law and International Private Law from Ain Shams University.
