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Parwana Zahib-Majed

Legal Director
About

Parwana Zahib-Majed has over 13 years of experience in advising on PPPs and public procurement with a focus on infrastructure, health and transport PPP projects.

Parwana has experience of working for public and private sector clients giving her a strong understanding of the commercial and policy drivers of each of the key parties involved in transactions of this nature. Parwana has drafted PPP legislation, policy, and guidelines as well as drafting and negotiating complex PPP contracts.

She advises on all elements of PPP project documentation (including project/concession agreements, operation and maintenance subcontracts and ancillary documents), complex payment mechanisms and project security/enhancement documentation.

Parwana also has significant experience in working with financing documentation and ensuring that the interface between project and financing documentation is properly addressed as well as helping to create innovative structures which allow a transaction to be “bankable” or “fundable”. She also has extensive experience in advising on operational projects which, coupled with her experience of closing deals, means she has an in-depth understanding of the issues and risks associated with a PPP transactions or government outsourcing.

Parwana is Co-Chair of DLA Piper UK's Leadership Alliance for Women.

Professional QualificationsSolicitor of the Senior Courts of England and Wales

EXPERIENCE

  • Advising Ministry of Health, Kenya on its ground-breaking and award winning USD 500m procurement of Managed Medical Equipment Services PPP project, including developing the contractual suite of documents, and negotiations with the bidders across 5 Lots.
  • Advising Agility Trains on the award winning £7.5 billion procurement by the UK Department of Transport (DfT) of a fleet of new intercity trains and supporting maintenance for a 30 year term. The project will deliver 866 vehicles and four new major depots. This was a complex project and the first use of a PPP structure in the UK for rolling stock procurement. Parwana continues to provide ongoing advice to Agility Trains in respect of all operational matters and variations of the project.
Education
  • University College London, LLM, Corporate and Commercial Law, 2004
  • Oxford Institute of Legal Practice, LPC, 2003
  • Oxford University, BA, Jurisprudence, 2002

Publications

  • Co-author of a chapter on Waste Sector PPPs in Public Private Partnerships: A Practical Analysis 2nd Edition ed Nick Avery

Additional information

Parwana is an active participant in DLA Piper's pro-bono initiatives, including being the pro-bono co-ordinator for the London Energy and Infrastructure Projects team.

Parwana has also participated in a number of New Perimeter projects, namely:

  • Part of the team delivering a one week workshop to East African Government Lawyers on Negotiation Skills in the context of foreign investment projects (including JVs and PPPs);
  • Part of the team delivering a training course on legal writing skills and techniques at the Zambia Institute of Legal Education in Lusaka, Zambia. The team led interactive workshops designed to provide legal drafting skills and practical drafting techniques for approximately 360 students.

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