Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP and Affiliates
Middle East
Overview
Our attorneys provide clients doing business in the Middle East with seamless legal services, advising on corporate, litigation and arbitration, and investigation matters throughout the region.
We work with leading Middle East law firms that provide local law knowledge in a variety of areas when needed.
The transactional experience of our lawyers, the breadth of our practice and the geographic reach of our offices have positioned Skadden as a global leader among law firms in the M&A market. Throughout the Middle East, we have represented a broad array of public and private companies, private equity firms and financial sponsors, investment banks, governmental entities, and other institutions and individuals in almost every type of M&A situation, including advising a company in the region in one of the largest-ever investments into a privately held startup. Our experience includes investments into the region, as well as outbound investments by sovereign wealth funds and other Middle East entities. The firm ranked first in announced M&A deals by value for Middle East & North Africa in 2017 by Thomson Reuters.
Skadden represents underwriters and issuers in the full range of public and private financings, including all types and combinations of debt and equity instruments. We have advised on a variety of innovative debt issuances for the governments of Egypt, Qatar and the UAE, as well as counseling on their investments outside the Middle East. Additionally, our attorneys have acted as underwriter/bank counsel on a number of significant sovereign financings in the region.
Our financing experience in the Middle East also includes numerous energy and infrastructure projects. Our banking and financing work in this area is complemented by Skadden’s experience with related development, construction, regulatory, environmental, real estate and litigation issues that arise with these projects.
Skadden has represented many clients in international arbitration proceedings in numerous Middle East jurisdictions, including Egypt, Iran, Kuwait, Lebanon, Syria and UAE. We have acted in disputes involving claims of expropriation and unfair treatment under international treaties, such as BITs and the Energy Charter Treaty. Our attorneys have appeared before every major international arbitral institution, representing clients throughout the region from a wide range of industries, including telecom, oil and gas, real estate, technology and media.
Our attorneys have represented clients in countries throughout the Middle East in connection with government investigations, enforcement actions, internal investigations, and white collar criminal prosecutions. We have handled substantial matters throughout the region, covering a wide range of issues involving, among others, anti-corruption; economic sanctions; tax, securities and accounting fraud; and money laundering. Our team also advises corporations and individuals involved in cross-border regulatory investigations and disputes. We defend corporations, directors, officers and employees against allegations in various business contexts and at every stage of the investigation and enforcement process.
