COVID-19 in the UAE: Where are we now?

Dr. Habib Al Mulla is the Executive Chairman of Habib Al Mulla & Partners, a member firm of Baker & McKenzie International and the Head of the Dispute Resolution practice in the UAE. He is one of the UAE’s most highly respected legal authorities with over 34 years’ experience in UAE law and has drafted many of the modern legislative structures in place in Dubai today. Dr. Habib focuses his practice on litigation and arbitration. He is Chairman of the CIArb (Chartered Institute of Arbitrators) UAE Committee and most recently served as Chairman of the board of trustees for the Dubai International Arbitration Centre (DIAC).

Mazen Boustany is the UAE Head of the Financial Regulatory practice of Habib Al Mulla & Partners, a member firm of Baker & McKenzie International, based in Dubai. He has over 22 years' experience in banking and finance law in the Middle East, including financial services regulation, Islamic finance, structured finance, securitisation, private equity, financial structuring and restructuring, cross-border transactions and investment funds. Mazen has helped draft many of the financial regulations for the UAE Central Bank and Ministry of Finance.

Borys Dackiw is the Head of Compliance practice in the Gulf based in the Firm's Abu Dhabi office. A partner of Baker McKenzie since 1995, Borys regularly advises clients across various industries on their compliance and anti-bribery policies and programs and has participated in whistleblower interviews relating to allegations of bribery and other bribery-related investigations. He also advises on mergers & acquisitions (including privatizations), private equity and general corporate and commercial law.

Mohamed El Khatib is the UAE Head of the Litigation practice of Habib Al Mulla & Partners, a member firm of Baker & McKenzie International, based in Dubai. Mohamed has over 25 years’ experience (including over 17 years in the UAE) in litigation across a number of industries and areas of UAE law including criminal, civil, banking, corporate disputes, real estate, construction and employment.

Steven Henderson is the Head of Baker McKenzie’s Real Estate and Hospitality practice in the UAE. He is a New Zealand and UK qualified lawyer who has been working in the Middle East since January 2006. Steven has extensive real estate (including pre-lets, leasing, acquisitions, disposals), development and hotel related experience.

Andrew Mackenzie is the UAE Head of the International Arbitration, Construction & Offshore Litigation practices of Habib Al Mulla & Partners, a member firm of Baker & McKenzie International, based in Dubai. He specialises in international arbitration law, with a particular focus on construction, energy, technology and financial institution disputes. Andrew has been based in the UAE for over 10 years and also has full rights of audience in the DIFC courts. He has advised on complex commercial disputes under a variety of civil and common law systems from across MENA and Africa, tried cases in all of the major arbitration forums (both treaty-based and commercial) and also sits as an arbitrator.

Omar Momany is a partner in Habib Al Mulla & Partners, a member firm of Baker & McKenzie International, and Head of the UAE Corporate/M&A practice. Omar focuses on public and private mergers and acquisitions, corporate restructurings, corporate governance, joint ventures, commercial matters and corporate/shareholders' disputes in the UAE and throughout the region. Omar has over 17 years' experience in the Middle East and has acted for local and regional corporates and financial institutions, governments and regulatory bodies, multinationals, family businesses and royal houses.

Sandeep Puri is the Head of the UAE Banking & Finance practice of Baker McKenzie Habib Al Mulla, based in Dubai. He has extensive experience advising on all aspects of banking, finance and capital market matters across the Middle East. Sandeep has been based in the UAE since 2003 and has worked on both conventional and Islamic finance transactions across various asset classes, including project finance, corporate finance, asset finance, real estate and capital markets (including sukuk).

Tarek Saad is a Dispute Resolution partner in the Dubai office and is also seasoned in maritime and insurance law. He has over 23 years' experience in general litigation in the Middle East, and has been practicing in the UAE for more than ten years. Tarek has extensive experience in civil, commercial, criminal, real estate and shipping disputes as well as intellectual property and employment litigation under UAE law. He appears before the UAE courts at various levels.

Kellie Blyth is a partner based in Baker McKenzie's Dubai office. An experienced technology and privacy lawyer, she has been advising multi-national businesses and public institutions in the UAE and Saudi Arabia since 2012. Kellie's main focus is advising private sector clients on their strategic IT projects and on their information compliance. She also advises clients how to develop, commercialise and implement digital and technology solutions whilst managing regulatory risks. Kellie acts as a trusted advisor to some of the world's best known and most innovative technology companies.

Joanna Matthews-Taylor is a partner in the Dubai office of Baker McKenzie and head of the employment practice. Joanna advises clients based in the UAE and wider Middle East region, on the full spectrum of employment law issues, including recruitment, employment contracts, benefits and termination. She has also advised clients on the employment aspects of corporate transactions, cross-border secondments and the mobility of employees in the Middle East. Joanna has worked with international clients in a variety of sectors including technology, life sciences, hospitality and insurance.

Wael El Tounsy is the Head of the Real Estate Dispute Resolution practice at Baker McKenzie Habib Al Mulla, based in Dubai. He has practiced law in the Middle East for over 30 years with a focus on real estate and construction litigation, including in relation to property investment and development, sale and purchase agreements and specialist commercial real estate. His experience extends to arbitration-related court proceedings, criminal litigation matters and maritime disputes.