{{Short description|Pakistani judge (1954–2025)}} {{Use dmy dates|date=February 2025}} {{Infobox officeholder | name = Sheikh Azmat Saeed | image = | alt = | caption = | office = Justice of the Supreme Court of Pakistan | term_start = 2012 | term_end = 2019 | office3 = Chief Justice of Lahore High Court | term_start3 = 2011 | term_end3 = 2012 | successor3 = Umar Ata Bandial | birth_date = {{Birth date|1954|8|28|df=yes}} | birth_place = Rawalpindi, West Punjab, Pakistan | death_date = {{Death date and age|2025|2|12|1954|8|28|df=yes}} | death_place = Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan | spouse = | children = | alma_mater = {{nobr|Punjab University Law College}} }}
'''Sheikh Azmat Saeed''' ({{langx|ur|عظمت سعید}}; 28 August 1954 – 12 February 2025) was a judge from the Supreme Court of Pakistan. He served the judiciary in various capacities and was part of several significant cases and decisions in Pakistan's legal history.
==Early life and career== Saeed commenced his legal career in Rawalpindi in 1978 following the completion of his LL.B degree. He gained experience by working in different law chambers before eventually establishing his own independent practice in Lahore in 1980. Subsequently, in 1981, he was enrolled as an Advocate of the Lahore High Court and also as an Advocate of the Supreme Court of Pakistan, marking significant milestones in his legal profession.<ref name="auto">{{Cite web|url=https://www.geo.tv/latest/45525-justice-azmat-saeed-takes-oath-as-permanent-sc-judge|title=Justice Azmat Saeed takes oath as permanent SC judge|website=www.geo.tv}}</ref>
===Appointment as Supreme Court judge=== Saeed was sworn in as a permanent judge of the Supreme Court on 1 June 2012. The oath-taking ceremony was presided over by the Chief Justice of Pakistan at the time, Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry. Before assuming this role, Saeed held the position of Chief Justice at the Lahore High Court.<ref name="auto"/>
===Acting Chief Justice of Pakistan=== In July 2019, Saeed took on the role of acting Chief Justice of Pakistan.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://arynews.tv/justice-sheikh-azmat-saeed-acting-cjp/ |title=Justice Sheikh Azmat Saeed takes oath as acting CJP |date=July 30, 2019 |website=ARY News}}</ref>
==Controversies and legal challenges== A petition was filed to challenge Saeed's assignment as the leader of the inquiry committee for the Broadsheet LLC scandal.<ref name="auto1">{{Cite web|url=https://www.geo.tv/latest/331172-justice-r-azmat-saeed-sheikh-to-head-govts-broadsheet-llc-probe|title=Retired Justice Azmat Saeed to head govt's probe into Broadsheet LLC scandal|website=www.geo.tv}}</ref> Nevertheless, the petition was rejected.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://dailytimes.com.pk/1069930/lhc-dismisses-contempt-petition-against-maryam-nawaz/|title=LHC dismisses contempt petition against Maryam Nawaz|date=March 6, 2023}}</ref>
In another case, the government retracted Saeed's selection as an arbitrator for resolving a conflict concerning Rs52 billion with 12 independent power producers (IPPs) established under the 2002 policy.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://tribune.com.pk/story/2362425/ex-sc-judge-azmat-saeed-out-from-ipps-case|title=Ex-SC judge Azmat Saeed out from IPPs' case|date=June 20, 2022|website=The Express Tribune}}</ref>
==Retirement and post-retirement work== Saeed concluded his tenure at the Supreme Court in 2019 and was commemorated with full-court reference within the Supreme Court.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://pakobserver.net/sc-judge-justice-azmat-saeed-to-retire-today/ |title=SC Judge Justice Azmat Saeed to retire today |website=Pakistan Observer |date=August 27, 2019}}</ref>
During his farewell address, Saeed emphasized the significance of maintaining an impartial judiciary and expressed his desire for an uninterrupted provision of justice without any compromises.<ref name="auto2">{{Cite web|url=https://pakobserver.net/no-shortcuts-in-path-of-justice-says-justice-azmat-in-farewell-speech-2/|title='No shortcuts in path of justice,' says Justice Azmat in farewell speech|date=August 27, 2019}}</ref>
Following his retirement, Saeed was appointed to lead the government's inquiry committee tasked with investigating the Broadsheet LLC scandal.<ref name="auto1"/>
==Death== Saeed died after a lengthy illness on 12 February 2025, at the age of 70, at a hospital in Lahore, where he had been receiving treatment for some time.<ref>[https://pakobserver.net/ex-supreme-court-judge-azmat-saeed-sheikh-passes-away-after-prolonged-illness/ Ex-Supreme Court judge Azmat Saeed Sheikh passes away after prolonged illness]</ref>
==Recognition== Chief Justice Asif Saeed Khosa, in his comments, described Saeed as a valuable asset to the superior judiciary. He acknowledged that the departing judge had authored numerous significant judgements and clarified many ambiguous issues during his tenure at the highest court.<ref name="auto2"/>
==References== {{reflist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saeed, Azmat}} Category:1954 births Category:2025 deaths Category:21st-century Pakistani judges Category:People from Rawalpindi Category:Punjab University Law College alumni Category:Justices of the Supreme Court of Pakistan