Partner
BM Morrison Partners
Dr Farhad Mirzayev has been with BM for more than 14 years and is considered one of the most active and talented experts in the domestic market. He has an impeccable academic background and has represented major domestic and international clients in various complex projects in Azerbaijan as well as in a number of cross-border transactions. His main areas of expertise are oil & gas, project finance, banking, dispute settlement and Public International Law.
Prior joining BM Farhad worked as legal expert for various commercial entities, law firms, NGOs and public companies. He has employment and training experience abroad, including training at Paris office of one of the top international law firms.
Farhad advises major foreign banks on their secured and unsecured financings to local banks and industry monopolies. He led Azerbaijani legal team advising foreign lenders and local banks on Eurobonds’ issue deals.
He is known as a reliable and most dedicated practitioner for his creative and innovative solutions in resolving complex legal matters. He has remarkable insight into the Production Sharing Agreements (PSAs) and other energy projects launched in Azerbaijan representing major transnational companies including Exxon, Shell, Total, Itochu, Lukoil and others. Farhad has also unrivalled experience in representing various foreign investors in Azerbaijan and major local clients in cross-border transactions.
Farhad has an extensive experience in representing various international organisations, financial institutions and banks, including the World Bank, EBRD, the Asian Development Bank, US ExIm Bank and others on various major projects in Azerbaijan.
Farhad is listed among top lawyers in Azerbaijan by leading international legal directories such as Chambers Global, Legal 500 and IFLR 1000. Farhad was granted a number of awards, including the British Chevening Scholarship for the full scholarship for his studies in the UK in 2004. Farhad led the team of Baku State University which received three awards at the P. Jessup International Law Moot Competition in 2001 in Washington DC. He has an impressible number of publications, including a spesialised book on international dispute settlement.
Education
1996- 2002 - LL.B and LL.M in International Law (magna cum laude), Baku State University (Azerbaijan)
2005 – LLM. in International Law, University of Nottingham (with merit), (UK)
2005 – Diploma in Comparative Constitutional Law (cum laude), University of Fribourg (Fribourg, Switzerland)
2008 – PhD in Law, Academy of Public Administration under the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan / Baku State University (Azerbaijan)
2007-2013 – PhD in Law, University of Leicester (UK)
Languages
Azerbaijani, English, French Russian, Turkish
Affiliation
2000 – Admitted to Practice in the Republic of Azerbaijan