Could you provide a brief journey of how you arrived where you are today?
Having been based with another magic circle law firm in London for six years, I decided that a move to the Middle East in 2006 would present an exciting opportunity to work in an emerging market environment and enable me to take advantage of my dual Arabic and English language skills. I have always been intrigued by Islamic finance and in particular the opportunities and challenges that it presents. I had therefore decided from an early stage in my legal career that I wanted to be involved in this dynamic financial industry.
From the moment that I arrived in the Middle East, there was a tremendous buzz in the region. This was partly driven by the liquidity from petrodollars funding large-scale projects throughout the region. I quickly became involved in a huge variety of transactions in countries such as the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar and Egypt. As the transactions were mainly in the MENA region, many were structured as Islamic finance transactions.
What does your role involve?
I advise on all Islamic finance-related transactions that involve Freshfields. As a global law firm, our lawyers deliver results worldwide through our own offices and alongside leading local firms. This means the variety of work is extremely interesting and frequently involves multiple jurisdictions. By way of example, I can be involved in Sukuk or other forms of Shariah compliant financing in the context of general corporate financing, real estate financing, acquisition financing and project and infrastructure financing as well as Shariah compliant funds or Islamic derivative solutions.
What is your greatest achievement to date?
From a professional point of view, acting as the lead lawyer for the lenders on the Red Sea Gateway Terminal Project. It was one of the first projects to forgo conventional facilities in favor of solely Islamic structures. In this case, the transaction involved a combination of the Mawsufah fi al Dhimma facility and Murabahah facilities.
Which of your products/services deliver the best results?
As a major global law firm, we deliver a wide variety of legal services. Whatever advice is required, I consistently find that being proactive, anticipating the client’s pressure points and working in a way that makes their lives easier is appreciated by clients.
What are the strengths of your business?
First and foremost it is the people, as a law firm is only as good as its people. Having the ability to draw on the talent that is available in the MENA region and also to be able to rely on the deep Freshfields network for cross-border transactions, is a real strength for us.
Secondly, being able to adapt to the market and having the expertise to offer the right legal services at the right time has meant that whether the markets are buoyant or in a downturn, we are able to maintain our position as one of the leaders in the global legal market.
What are the factors contributing to the success of your company?
We genuinely enjoy what we do and this shows through our enthusiasm and commitment to execute our work at the highest level. In turn, our clients get the most consistent and best possible service experience.
Our clients appreciate that we have technically strong lawyers. What sets us apart is that we also offer commercial and pragmatic advice.
What are the obstacles faced in running your business today?
Being based in the Middle East, where many of our lawyers are not from this part of the world, finding lawyers who are committed to this region for the long-term and not just for three to four years can be challenging.
Where do you see the Islamic finance industry in the next five years?
I hope that the existing products and processes will become more standardized and therefore easier to implement and available to a wider group of people. We are already starting to see this from the good work being carried out by the International Islamic Financial Market and AAOIFI.
Name one thing you would like to see change in the world of Islamic finance.
For the general public to appreciate the fair and ethical aspects of Islamic finance; for there to be more risk sharing between the parties in Islamic finance transactions; and for Islamic finance to play a major part in solving the current global financial crisis.