Md Salahuddin Mahmud is a Lincoln’s Inn Barrister and an Advocate of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh with over 17 years of legal practice and country expertise on Bangladesh. He specialises in constitutional, criminal, human rights, and immigration law, with particular expertise in political, religious, ethnic, and social group persecution, rule of law, electoral governance, state accountability, and the operation of the judiciary and law enforcement agencies. He is the Head of Chambers of Salahuddin & Associates, Legal Adviser to the Bangladesh Academy for Rural Development (BARD), and a Listed Counsel of the United Nations International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (UN-IRMCT) and the Kosovo Specialist Chambers (KSC), The Hague.
Advocate, Supreme Court of Bangladesh.
Legal Adviser, Bangladesh Academy for Rural Development (BARD).
Counsel, United Nations International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (UNIRMCT), Netherlands.
Counsel, Kosovo Specialist Chambers, Netherlands
The Expert is a Lincoln’s Inn Barrister and an Advocate of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh with over 17 years of legal practice and recognised country expertise on Bangladesh. He specialises in constitutional, criminal, human rights, and immigration law, with particular expertise in political, religious, ethnic, and social group persecution, the rule of law, electoral governance, state accountability, and the operation of the judiciary and law enforcement agencies.
The Expert is the Head of Chambers of Salahuddin & Associates and serves as Legal Adviser to the Bangladesh Academy for Rural Development (BARD). At the international level, he is a Listed Counsel of the United Nations International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (UN-IRMCT) and the Kosovo Specialist Chambers (KSC), The Hague, with rights of audience to represent suspects, accused persons, and victims before the court. He is among the South Asian counsel included on the KSC List of Counsel. The Expert has extensive experience appearing before the Supreme Court, District Courts, and Magistrate Courts of Bangladesh. His practice encompasses civil, criminal, constitutional, corporate, human rights, immigration, and cross-border legal matters.
His academic qualifications include a Master in Human Rights and Security Studies from Jagannath University, an LL.M. from Southern University Bangladesh, LL.B. (Honours) degrees from Middlesex University and the International Islamic University Chittagong, a Postgraduate Diploma in Professional Legal Skills from City, University of London, and an MBA from Cardiff Metropolitan University.
In addition to legal practice, the Expert has served as an Adjunct Lecturer in Law and has authored and co-authored publications on human rights, refugee law, judicial accountability, constitutional law, immigration law, international legal principles, and cross-border legal matters. He is regularly consulted by national and international organisations as an expert on constitutional law, criminal justice, human rights, immigration, electoral governance, and the rule of law. The Expert is widely recognised for his understanding of both domestic and international legal systems and their implications for governance, accountability, and the protection of fundamental rights.The Expert regularly prepares reports addressing a broad range of issues relating to human rights, security, and humanitarian conditions. These include political developments and governance; judicial systems and access to justice; corruption and impunity; arbitrary arrest and detention; prison conditions; enforced disappearances; torture and other forms of cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment; risks of political persecution; threats from state and non-state actors; reprisals and retaliation; and the availability and effectiveness of state protection.
The Expert also examines gender-based violence and domestic abuse; sexual violence and exploitation; child abuse and neglect; forced and child marriage; arranged marriages; polygamous marriages; marriage practices and customs; divorce and separation proceedings; child custody and guardianship disputes; maintenance and alimony issues; inheritance and succession rights; dowry-related violence; female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C); honour-based violence and honour killings; human trafficking; forced labour; modern slavery; the recruitment and use of child soldiers; forced conscription; and violations of the principle of non-refoulement.
In addition, the Expert provides analysis on ethnic, religious, racial, tribal, linguistic, and social discrimination; persecution based on political opinion, nationality, sexual orientation, gender identity, or membership of a particular social group; hate crimes; restrictions on freedom of expression, assembly, association, movement, religion, and the press; censorship; and attacks against journalists, lawyers, judges, human rights defenders, and civil society actors.
The Expert further addresses issues relating to armed conflict and insecurity, including terrorism, insurgency, organized crime, gang violence, communal violence, blood feuds, revenge attacks, land and property disputes, displacement, refugee and asylum matters, the reintegration of ex-combatants, criminal deportees, statelessness, and the feasibility of internal relocation.
Reports may also cover humanitarian and socio-economic conditions, including poverty, food insecurity, homelessness, access to housing, education and employment, discrimination in access to public services, social exclusion, and the situation of internally displaced persons and vulnerable populations.
Furthermore, the Expert assesses healthcare systems and access to medical treatment, including healthcare infrastructure and capacity; maternal and reproductive healthcare; mental health conditions; psychosocial support services; HIV/AIDS; communicable and non-communicable diseases; disabilities; access to medication and specialized medical services; and the availability, affordability, and quality of healthcare.
Additional areas of expertise include family law and personal status matters; marriage and divorce laws and practices; recognition of customary, religious, and civil marriages; annulment proceedings; spousal rights; parental responsibility; adoption and foster care; birth registration and civil documentation; nationality and citizenship issues; missing persons; environmental degradation and climate-related displacement; indigenous peoples' rights; labour rights and exploitation; access to legal remedies; transitional justice; reparations; and broader concerns relating to international human rights law, refugee law, and humanitarian protection.
The expert has prepared a substantial number of expert reports across a wide range of matters, including UK asylum and refugee claims involving Bangladeshi nationals, as well as other immigration-related proceedings. The reports provide structured country-of-origin analysis of Bangladesh, focusing on governance, political conditions, and human rights issues relevant to protection claims.
The assessments cover freedom of expression; electoral integrity and political corruption; allegations of democratic backsliding; extrajudicial killings; enforced disappearances; politically motivated prosecutions and false cases; and abuse of authority by law enforcement agencies, including the police and RAB. They also examine the functioning of the criminal justice system, including issues of fairness, access to justice, and institutional independence.
Further areas of expertise include political violence and harassment; gender-based violence, including violence against women and children; persecution and discrimination affecting religious minorities and individuals, including third-gender communities; forced marriage; family law, child custody, and guardianship disputes; immigration and asylum-related systems in Bangladesh; labour rights and workplace exploitation; land disputes; and conditions affecting vulnerable populations, including low-income groups and Rohingya refugees.
The expert draws on a professional network across Bangladesh to assist in verifying legal and documentary evidence where required and applies independent methods for assessing the authenticity of both legal and non-legal materials. The expert is also qualified and available to provide oral testimony before courts and tribunals in support of written expert opinions.
1. M H Patoari, S M T Karim and S Mahmud, ‘Judicial Accountability in Bangladesh: A Discourse’ (2013) 3 African Journal of Law and Criminology 58–67.
2. M H Patoari, M H Murad and S Mahmud, ‘The Desired Qualities of a Good Judge’ (2014) 3 Academic Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies 97–103.
3. M H Patwari, M R Goni and S Mahmud, ‘Women and Children Trafficking in Bangladesh: Causes and Effects’ (2014) 11 Indian Journal of Human Rights and the Law 59–76.
4. S Mahmud, ‘How far the definition of a refugee under the Refugee Convention 1951 protects the victims of human rights abuses? A review in the light of legislation and case law of the UK’ (2015) 6 Mediterranean Journal of Social Sciences 460–464.
5. S Mahmud and M S Rahman, ‘Do the emergency services have a duty of care towards individual members of the public? A critique under English tort law’ (2016) 2 International Journal of Law 77–81.
6. S Mahmud and M S Rahman, ‘The concept and status of jus cogens: An overview’ (2017) 3 International Journal of Law 111–114.