UAE Law and Practice Contributed by: Amir Alkhaja, Areen Jayousi, Gulsun Ozmen and Alia AlMarzooqi, Habib Al Mulla & Partners
Habib Al Mulla & Partners was founded in 1984 and is a market-leading law firm headquartered in Dubai, with offices in Abu Dhabi, Istanbul, Moscow, Bagh - dad, Cairo and New Delhi. The firm brings together a team of 80+ lawyers who provide tailored legal advice across over 14 areas of practice and serve clients in industries ranging from finance and construction to energy and technology. Renowned for its strength in dispute resolution, regulatory work, and cross-border
transactions, the firm is consistently highly ranked, affirming its position among the region’s top-tier firms. Dr Habib Al Mulla, the firm’s founder, is one of the UAE’s most prominent legal figures and was instrumental in shaping major legislative reforms. His vision helped establish the Dubai International Finan - cial Centre (DIFC) – the UAE’s first financial free zone – solidifying the firm’s legacy as a pioneer in legal and regulatory advancement in the Middle East.
Authors
Amir Alkhaja is the managing partner of Habib Al Mulla and Partners and a licensed UAE lawyer with rights of audience before all UAE courts, including the Court of Cassation and the Supreme Court. With over 15
Gulsun Ozmen is a UK-qualified lawyer specialised in corporate and M&A. She is involved in transactional and advi - sory work on a broad range of non- contentious corporate and commercial matters. Gulsun negotiates, drafts and
years of experience, he focuses on commercial, banking and white-collar crime litigation, including Islamic finance disputes. A former Dubai Police officer, Amir brings a rare dual perspective of law enforcement and legal advocacy. He is widely respected for leading high-stakes disputes across the GCC and MENA regions, and for successfully guiding the firm through its recent transition to an independent, growth-focused practice.
provides advice on transactional documents relating to M&A deals and investment activities. She also advises on foreign direct investment projects, carrying out corporate due diligence, pre-closing restructuring and post-closing implementation. Gulsun negotiates and drafts constitutional documents for company establishments and shareholders’ agreements. She advises and assists regional high-net-worth individu - als and large family businesses on restructuring, trust structuring, governance and family succession planning. She also advises clients on the regulatory and compliance requirements in the UAE.
Areen Jayousi is a senior disputes lawyer and a qualified solicitor of Eng - land and Wales with over 18 years’ experience advising on complex commercial disputes across the UAE. He specialises in UAE law litigation
Alia AlMarzooqi is a trainee associate in the corporate and commercial department at Habib Al Mulla and Partners. She brings progressive experience across top-tier private practice, in-house and international
and arbitration, and is consistently ranked Band 1 by Chambers and recognised by another leading law directory. Areen covers civil and commercial litigation, arbitration, insolvency and financial crime matters, often involving significant financial and reputational exposure. He combines strong knowl - edge of onshore UAE law with an international outlook, regularly advising international law firms and multinational clients on contentious matters within the region. Fluent in Arabic and English, he is known for his pragmatic, commercially focused and detail-oriented approach.
firms, having developed focused expertise in corpo - rate advisory, M&A transactions, commercial contract drafting, regulatory compliance and governance across UAE, Bahrain and Oman frameworks. Alia holds an LLM in Business Law from Saint Joseph University, Dubai, and a Professional Diploma in International Arbitration from the Dubai International Arbitration Centre (DIAC), reflecting her commitment to continued professional development across transactional and dispute resolution practice areas.
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