Assisting in the legal and regulatory process is a modest but crucial contribution for establishing the rule of law which is the first stone upon which a modern democratic system is built.

From the beginning, we assist in creating a proper regulatory and business framework including legal, organizational and managerial areas. We contribute to the ongoing modernization of the legislative environment with a view to creating a clear well-defined and regulated market where fair market opportunities can be sustained and developed.

We have advised several governments in the region with respect to necessary legislation, commercial and regulatory matters to be implemented in emerging and new open markets of the Middle East region. These include advising some governments in drafting new major legislations having an important political and economical impact on local societies.

We also assist our clients in lobbying to change and implement necessary regulatory developments.

Our attorneys have played a key role in shaping new legislative and regulatory frameworks across a broad range of markets. In Saudi Arabia, they helped carry out regulatory reform work for the Ministry of Municipalities and Rural Affairs (MOMRA) charged with the responsibility of drafting a new regulation creating 178 municipal councils and establishing the electoral system for holding the first public elections in the Kingdom. They have also represented Bahrain’s Economic Development Board (EDB) and Court of the Crown Prince in a effort to reform and modernize the Bahraini Labour Law, including reviewing the applicable legislation and assisting in the establishment of fee structures for immigration, employment of expatriate workers and termination procedures (primary and secondary legislation). In Qatar and Algeria they helped with the restructuring of the telecommunication sector and in Saudi Arabia with the IXP. In addition, we have particular expertise in advising several telecommunication operators in the region on licensing and compliance with telecommunication regulations, government procurement rules and other security issues.

Through our association with Squire Sanders, we also benefit from its extensive practice expertise gained in dealing with regulatory issues in the United States, Latin America, Central and Eastern Europe, Russia, and Asia. Squire Sanders has assisted governments in the Middle East in developing comprehensive environmental programs in the UAE, legislative/regulatory initiatives including tourism restructuring projects in Egypt, and restructuring of the telecommunication sector in Jordan, Palestine and Iraq.