35 ASIAN LEGAL BUSINESS – MARCH 2024 WWW.LEGALBUSINESSONLINE.COM Over the past decade, a few Asian firms have set up in Dubai, but none have lasted. Chinese-Australian law firm King & Wood Mallesons maintained an office for some years in the UAE’s commercial hub, after its 2013 merger with troubled law firm SJ Berwin. That combination closed last year after KWM’s exclusive alliance with Eversheds Sutherland. Korea’s Bae, Kim & Lee became the first firm from that country to establish a Dubai office in 2015, but that closed in 2019. Leading Japanese firm Nishimura & Asahi opened a representative office in Dubai in 2016, which sources tell us was ordered to be shut down as international law firms were not allowed to open representative offices. Now, Japan’s largest firm by headcount has an alliance with local firm Afridi & Angell, where they second Japanese attorneys to assist clients in the region. “A few East Asian law firms have set up in the region, but none of these have lasted significantly. Some law firms are seconding lawyers for fixed periods of time to get some first-hand experience. This is likely the successful long-term solution to growing a practice.,” say Gunson and Noble. This difficulty in setting up a practice stems from an overcrowded international legal market in Dubai, the failure of law firms to look beyond Dubai, and a lack of local market knowledge which is integral to doing legal business in the Middle East. “The presence of Asian law firms in the MENA region is relatively limited, this is due to various challenges and restrictions. One significant factor is that local legal markets tend to already be developed, and there are certain restrictions on practicing and advising effectively local laws in these regions, which necessitates deep, specialised local legal knowledge and expertise. The MENA region’s diversity and vastness add to the complexity, requiring a nuanced understanding of different legal and business environments,” explains Calvert. “The Middle East is more than just Dubai. Opening an office in the UAE, which is a market that already has many lawyers and is arguably overlawyered, does not automatically lead to more capabilities across the region,” Gunson and Noble add. Some lawyers in the Middle East, on the condition of anonymity, explain that while East Asian law firms have client relationships, none have shown the ability to be effective locally. And an office in the Dubai International Financial Centre, which is “an isolated bubble” in the region that is already “overlawyered” gives you no capabilities in the rest of the Gulf – Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Qatar, Egypt and others. THE ALLIANCE OPTION The better solution, experts say, is to set up alliances with local firms and use secondments to build local knowledge of the market and laws. As trade with Asia continues to grow, more Indian and Chinese lawyers are expected to shore up in the Gulf, Gunson and Noble say. “Law firm alliances are rare, but more and more work between MENA and Asian law firms as respective local counsel is increasing. We can expect that more law firms, particularly Chinese law firms and lawyers, will cast more attention to the Middle East, particularly the Gulf, in the coming years. Indian law firms and lawyers have long been active in the Gulf, and this will continue,” they add. Indeed, five Indian law firms set up shop in the UAE in 2023. But these were small commitments, with firms looking to dip their toes in international waters, assist specific clients in dispute resolution, and also brand themselves as a cross-border law firm. The level of investment – in the form of one or two practitioners - does not reflect a serious effort yet to expand into the Middle Eastern markets. This market for international lawyers is significantly growing in crossborder dispute resolution which is a practice area of “increasing importance” in the region, say Gunson and Noble. “In the past years, our firm has represented Asian clients in litigation involving the UAE, Egypt, Iraq, England, India, Pakistan, and beyond. As the Gulf continues to act as a link between economic centres, the need for sophisticated dispute resolution providers able to tackle these kinds of issues will increase.” Calvert believes that legal integration is also possible in the future, with more strategic collaborations between Asian and Middle Eastern law firms. “Building strong client relationships requires a strong online and offline presence and fostering collaboration and teamwork among our lawyers with firms across Asia is vital,” says Calvert. “Looking forward, we anticipate the legal landscape between the Middle East and key Asian economies to become more integrated. This could involve more strategic collaborations between law firms, allowing for a more seamless legal service offering across these regions.” MIDDLE EAST “Law firm alliances are rare, but more and more work between MENA and Asian law firms as respective local counsel is increasing. We can expect that more law firms, particularly Chinese law firms and lawyers, will cast more attention to the Middle East, particularly the Gulf, in the coming years. Indian law firms and lawyers have long been active in the Gulf, and this will continue.” — Christopher Gunson and Jonathan Noble, Amereller
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