Stephenson Harwood — United Arab Emirates

About

As a trusted advisor to clients operating across the Middle East, our team offers practical, business-focused legal support gained from over 20 years of regional experience. With approximately 60 lawyers, including 20 partners, we provide advice on both English and UAE law (including the laws and regulations within the various freezones), drawing on extensive commercial and legal knowledge to meet clients' specific needs and priorities. We support clients across a multitude of service and sector areas, including: - Corporate - Dispute Resolution and International Arbitration - Employment - Finance (including Islamic Finance) - Insurance - Life Sciences - Maritime, Trade & Offshore - Private Wealth - Projects, Energy & Infrastructure - Technology - Transportation Clients choose us for our seamless blend of international standards and in-depth local expertise. Our multilingual lawyers, experienced in both common and civil law systems, provide clear advice and can both draft and negotiate in Arabic and English. Our close connections with government agencies and regulators also enable us to support clients in complex cross-border transactional and contentious matters effectively. Recognised as ‘Middle East Law Firm of the Year – UAE,’ we deliver high-quality legal solutions with a commercial and creative mindset. Whether clients are entering the market, resolving a dispute, or growing their business, we are known for being a trusted partner to clients in the region.

Office locations

Practice areas

Lawyers in this office

Chinar Zaidi

Managing Associate · Banking and Finance

Diwakar Agarwal

Partner · Corporate

Emily Aryeetey

Partner · Employment Law

Emily Daly

Associate · Employment Law

Hadeel Hussein

Managing Associate · Dispute Resolution

Iwan Walters

Partner · Projects

James Baldwin

Managing Associate · Arbitration

John Lewis

Partner - Head of Commercial Litigation, Middle East · General Commercial Disputes

Khurram Ali

Partner

Kiersten Lucas

Partner · Employment Law

Laura Anderson

Managing Associate · Employment

Mahmoud El-Sayed

Managing Associate · Maritime Law

Mark Lakin

Partner · Maritime

Mazin El Amin

Managing Associate · Shipping

Mehtab Kassam

Managing Associate · Shipping

Melissa Forbes-Miranda

Partner · Corporate

Menelaus Kouzoupis

Partner · Maritime

Mohamed El Hawawy

Partner - Head of Middle East Shipping and Insurance · Shipping

Monika Humphreys-Davies

Managing Associate · Admiralty and Maritime Law

Murtaza Hussain

Managing Associate · Banking and Finance

Paul Katsouris

Partner · Maritime

Rania Tadros

Middle East Managing Partner · Maritime Disputes

Ron Nobbs

Partner – Head of Construction, Middle East · Construction

Rustum Shah

Partner · Banking and Finance

Ryan Whelan

Partner · Infrastructure Disputes

Saif Almobideen

Partner · Maritime Shipping

Shwini Dsouza

Associate · Banking and Finance

Suditi Surana

Associate · Corporate and M&A

Toufic Safie

Partner · Corporate