Mabvuto Sakala is the managing partner of our Zambia office and a member of the Corporate Investigations Practice.

He specialises in employment-related litigation and alternate dispute resolution and has acted on some of the country’s most complex and high-profile commercial litigation and arbitration matters.

He is currently acting for several Zambian financial institutions in class-action claims for wrongful termination, including the recalculation of terminal benefits and pension entitlements. Other examples of Mabvuto’s work include advising clients on alternative dispute resolution, such as tribunal-led and independent mediations and arbitrations, in the full range of individual and collective labour conflicts.

His experience extends to banking, mining, energy and financial services, and he has recently been part of the legal team acting for a mining company in a USD 2 billion arbitration claim by a Zambian Government sovereign fund company seated in London under the auspices of the London Court of International Arbitration.

Mabvuto is a member of the International Bar Association, the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, London and admitted to the bar in Zambia. He has an LLB from the University of Zambia, an LLM from the University of Nottingham, England, and a Post-Graduate Diploma in Law from Lund University, Sweden.

Relevant Experience

• Acted for and defended African Alliance Pioneer Master Fund (African Alliance) as respondent in a highly complex arbitration claim, brought by Vehicle Finance Limited. Vehicle Finance Limited sought more than USD 32 million in damages. The claim arose from alleged breaches of contract by African Alliance. The matter involved several intricate legal issues relating to reliance damages, compensatory damages and Wrotham Park damages, among others.
• Acted for and prosecuted a claim by Lap Green against the Government of the Republic of Zambia in the High Court in respect of the compulsory acquisition of its USD 257 million investment in Zambia Telecommunications Corporation Limited (Zamtel).
• Acted for and defended the biggest mobile phone service provider in Zambia, in a matter in which Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA) had issued a notice to garnishee its accounts for the sum of USD  10 million for not properly filing tax returns.
• Acted for and prosecuted a claim by one of the biggest Banks in Zambia regarding a dispute with Trade Kings Limited involving the breach of forward exchange contract valued at USD 4.8 million in a first-ever derivatives litigation in Zambia.
• Advised one of the biggest banks in Zambia in a restructuring of its human capital policies and undertaking of voluntary separations.

Awards

• Chambers and Partners ranked Mabvuto in Band 3 for General Business Law, Zambia for two consecutive years (2020 and 2021)
• Mabvuto is also a Chevening Scholar which he was awarded in 2005 by the British Government to study for an LLM at the Nottingham University in the United Kingdom.

‘Managing partner Mabvuto Sakala is well versed in dispute resolution, including energy and employment disputes. He has experience acting for significant financial sector clients.’ – Chambers and Partners, 2021

• Zambia: A practical, convenient option for enforcing foreign judgments and arbitration awards