Get to Know your Executive – Sajjad Malik, Public Affairs Liaison

  • 24 janvier 2019

In our continuing efforts to introduce you to your OBA Executive, we wish to introduce you to Sajjad Malik. Read on to learn more about Sajjad’s practice, his experiences, and his motivations for serving on the OBA Citizenship and Immigration Section Executive.

TELL US A LITTLE ABOUT YOURSELF.

Before joining the OBA's immigration bar and even before immigrating to Canada, I had quite a diverse professional background: I was a medical doctor turned public servant, remained a regional corporate affairs head in a European multinational corporation, and later practiced as a business/tax attorney.  

I completed my first professional degree in medicine and surgery (MBBS/MD) followed by a law degree (LLB). After my post-graduate training in medicine, I practiced as a physician for the initial period and then decided to join public service. I was selected as a federal civil superior servant of Pakistan and held various quasi-judicial positions, finally served as a deputy commissioner of income tax. I then moved on to join Telenor, a Norwegian cell phone company. Though my corporate career was going smoothly, with multiple opportunities arising in the multinational sector, I decided to pursue a full-time practice of law and serve individuals instead of governments and corporate employers. I wanted to be an independent legal professional and a "legal entrepreneur". 

With exposure to roles such as a decision-maker, adjudicator and a public affairs professional, I developed a deep interest in employing my skill set to bridge the gap between the general public and decision-makers by representing clients before government regulators and tribunals. It was at that stage that I also decided to pursue an LLM degree from UCLA with a concentration in business law and tax. That was the time when I decided to immigrate to Canada for a better future and opportunities. In Canada, I completed my legal educational accreditation process and got called to the bar in Ontario in 2015.