ADDLESHAW GODDARD IN QATAR

INTRODUCTION We are delighted to introduce to you Addleshaw Goddard, an international law firm that is established in Qatar as Addleshaw Goddard (GCC) LLP, a QFC LLP. Our Doha office has some of the region’s best known and respected lawyers. Our experienced team, with its Arabic and English bilingual capability, combines a deep understanding of Qatar and the MENA region, with specialist expertise in corporate and commercial, finance, private wealth management, construction, projects, arbitration and dispute resolution to deliver high value, complex assignments across the MENA region. With the increasing importance of Sharia’h compliant financing to our clients’ business, we also have the expertise and experience in Islamic Finance to help clients develop and use Sharia’h compliant structures and products for their business and transactions. We consider this an exciting development for the legal market in Qatar. Addleshaw Goddard is a significant UK based international law firm with key strengths in corporate, commercial and banking law, construction and dispute resolution. This aligns well with the requirements of the Qatar market and allows us to present a wide range of market-leading experience that we consider will be a significant offering in the Qatar market in terms of its depth of expertise, high quality service delivery and access to wider resources. In the following pages we are pleased to provide more information about Addleshaw Goddard and hope to provide you with a better understanding of its size and range of legal services. We look forward to working with you. We aim to partner with our clients in Qatar, developing lasting relationships that deliver services in better and innovative ways. We look forward to welcoming you to our offices. Thank you

Martin Brown Head of Qatar office +974 4019 0302 [email protected]

They offer proactive client support and take a commercial and pragmatic approach. They're efficient in their execution of transactions. A well-balanced firm that looks to ensure the client experience is good. CHAMBERS UK 2015

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ABOUT ADDLESHAW GODDARD Addleshaw Goddard is a leading full service UK and international law firm, providing quality-focused and commercially-minded legal advice across a wide range of market sectors and industries. We aim to achieve real commercial value for each client by drawing together professionals from across our practices and building strong relationships with all our clients.

How we differentiate ourselves from our competitors Our size and strength ►

174 partners and 700 other legal staff, a cross cultural team speaking many languages

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Offices in Doha, Dubai, Hong Kong, Leeds, London, Manchester, Muscat, Singapore and Tokyo (in association with Hashidate Law Office)

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Advice in other key jurisdictions is provided seamlessly through our network of preferred firms

The breadth and quality of our practice areas ►

37 practice areas are ranked in the top tier across the UK (Legal 500 2015)

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40 practice areas ranked in the top tier across the UK (Chambers UK 2016)

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Hong Kong Corporate group ranked in the Legal 500 Asia Pacific 2015

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Oman Banking & Finance team ranked in Top Tier of Legal 500 2015

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Qatar office ranked in Legal 500 2015

The calibre of our lawyers and service ►

FT Innovative Lawyers 2015: ranked 'standout' in the technology, client service and dispute resolution categories.

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Winner of the Most Innovative Client Service Award for our Future Leaders Programme in the Managing Partners' Forum Awards 2014

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The Times Top 50 Employers for Women 2014 – ranked for the eighth time

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The American Lawyer 2015 Global Legal Award – winner of the Global Dispute of the Year: UK Litigation category.

Our client base We are key advisors to a large number of public and private sector organisations including: ►

Over 160 financial institutions, including HSBC, Standard Chartered, Barclays, Santander, Deutsche Bank, Bank Muscat, National Bank of Oman as examples

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large numbers of FTSE 100 and 250 companies, including Associated British Foods, Aviva, British Airways, BP, Diageo, GlaxoSmithKline, Hammerson, PZ Cussons, Sainsbury's, Travelodge and United Utilities

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public bodies, including Ofwat, Department of Health, Home Office, Ministry of Defence, numerous NHS Trusts, and many local authorities

A very strong motivated and user friendly outfit. A great team to work with, who demonstrated that they were capable of prevailing over the biggest opponents. CHAMBERS UK DIRECTORY 2016

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OUR PRACTICE AREAS We listen, we think and we aim to achieve real commercial value for each client by drawing together all our key practice areas.

CORPORATE

COMMERCIAL

LITIGATION

► Corporate finance

► Commercial contracts

► Banking and financial litigation

► Employee incentives

► Competition and State Aid

► Construction

► Financial regulation

► Data and information

► Commercial fraud

► Financial services

► Employment

► Commercial litigation

► Funds

► Intellectual Property

► Defamation

► M&A

► IT / outsourcing

► Insurance / reinsurance

► Private equity and venture capital

► Medial and advertising

► International litigation and

► Professional practices / LLPs

► Pensions

► Structured real estate

► Public procurement

► Tax

► Trade marks

arbitration ► Product liability

FINANCE AND PROJECTS

REAL ESTATE

► Aviation

► Charities and trusts

► Banking, including:

► Commercial property

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asset finance and securitisation

► Construction

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business support and restructuring

► Planning and environment

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energy / infrastructure project finance

► Private capital

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Islamic finance

► Property litigation

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real estate finance

► Trusts

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social housing

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Infrastructure, projects & energy, including:

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education

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energy and utilities

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health

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infrastructure

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rail and light rail

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social housing

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urban regeneration

The commitment from all was excellent. There were several occasions where people had to get planes to Africa with just a couple of hours’ notice - and for us that demonstrated outstanding service. ASSISTANT GENERAL COUNSEL, LATAM, AFRICA AND GCC, DIAGEO

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HOW WE CAN ASSIST YOU Addleshaw Goddard has leading expertise in corporate, banking and finance, commercial transactions, engineering, projects and construction, private wealth management and dispute resolution. Where necessary, our Qatar office can call upon the full resources of Addleshaw Goddard’s extensive team of experts to ensure the highest standard of service delivery. The firm has many years of experience in working together in teams across different geographic locations and prides itself on being able to put together teams of specialist experts to ensure that clients have access to the best available resources.

Corporate Addleshaw Goddard’s Corporate Division offers an impressive track record of leading expertise and assists clients with all aspects of corporate law including expertise in M&A, domestic flotations, corporate finance, public to privates, buy-outs, private equity, tax and company secretarial services. The team prides itself on dealing innovatively and bringing commercial acumen to every transaction. Partners and lawyers have geographic, sector and market expertise, and regularly manage and transact multi-jurisdictional deals. There are over 70 lawyers and other legal staff in the UK corporate team alone. The institutional side of the Addleshaw Goddard City of London practice combines the company, securities, compliance, commercial and tax expertise necessary to advise corporate finance clients. The firm has advised numerous sponsors of flotations and underwriters of equity issues, both on the main London market and AIM. It has significant experience of UK and international mergers and acquisitions, disposals, joint ventures, reconstructions and other forms of equity and debt financing. The team is proud of its leading reputation in private equity, with strong relationships with all the UK’s leading equity houses.

They look after clients extremely well. All the partners ensure they are always just a phone call away. CHAMBERS UK DIRECTORY

Banking With a strong City of London presence and market-leading teams in its regional and international offices, the Addleshaw Goddard banking team provides advice to UK and international banks, building societies and corporate clients. The specialist team differentiates itself from other UK law firms by acting for all major UK banks, 40 of the 60 building societies nationwide, and a significant number of foreign banks. At the most recent headcount, there were almost 100 lawyers and other legal staff working in our banking group. Through a first-class corporate and property client base, the team also has the opportunity to work alongside some very sophisticated purchasers of financial services, and there is a strong and deep-rooted understanding of what these organisations require. Being members of many major bank panels and building solid working relationships has allowed the team to understand how those clients liaise with their own major clients, enabling the Addleshaw Goddard team to offer a tailored and effective service. The team regularly advises lenders on their arrangement of significant syndicated facilities (including leveraged finance, social housing finance and real estate finance) and is therefore familiar with primary syndication issues.

simpler to make the commercial decisions as there is the confidence and the knowledge there CHAMBERS UK DIRECTORY - BANKING & FINANCE LENDERS, LONDON

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Commercial Addleshaw Goddard has one of the largest and most experienced teams of commercial lawyers in the UK, incorporating expertise in commercial contracts, procurement, Intellectual Property, brands and design, IT and business process outsourcing, data and information, and competition. The team prides itself on the fact that many of its lawyers have worked in-house or on secondment in a variety of private and public sector organisations, as well as having lawyers with experience of working for the European Commission and the UK Government. With around 40 lawyers supported by a wider team, this is one of the largest and most experienced teams in the country, advising on commercial contracts ranging from major outsourcings and IT transactions to lower-value discrete commercial contracts. Clients and suppliers can call on considerable specialist expertise in relation to technology and business process outsourcing/ insourcing, managed services projects and procurement. The team has experience of transfers from one supplier to another, exit management, termination and hand-back procedures and all other issues relevant to both outsourcing and insourcing. The quality of advice and service delivered is demonstrated by the Firm’s top tier rankings in the independent legal market directories in Corporate and Commercial, Information Technology, e-commerce and Media/Entertainment.

constructive and open-minded ... the quality of the work is excellent. CHAMBERS UK DIRECTORY - OUTSOURCING, UK-WIDE

Engineering, projects and construction The Engineering, Projects & Construction Group has over 40 specialist lawyers and advises on all construction, engineering and procurement issues on all sides of the construction industry. We provide incisive advice, proactive support and an all round legal service to enable you to run your business more effectively and improve that all important profit margin, whichever part of the industry you come from and wherever you are based. As a dedicated construction practice, we have extensive experience of working within the construction industry, we know how it works and understand the complex issues it faces on a daily basis. Our preferred approach is to work as part of your team to ensure the success of your project whether that is setting up or managing a project, chasing your entitlements or defending claims.

You feel they are in your corner 100%. They are a dynamic practice, with great global experience, able to work across time zones and borders easily, and they work well with clients. CHAMBERS & PARTNERS UK DIRECTORY - CONSTRUCTION

Private wealth management Addleshaw Goddard has one of the most significant private client groups in the UK and we are trusted advisors to corporates, high net worth individuals and charities on personal finance planning, trusts, contentious trusts and tax. We are one of the few private client teams in the UK working within a top rated corporate firm. This enables us to offer a comprehensive service to our clients and their wider business concerns by drawing on the significant expertise of our colleagues with other areas of legal speciality such as corporate restructuring, employment, litigation and corporate tax. The team also has a significant focus on international issues; we are regularly instructed by internationally-based private clients, entrepreneurs and trustees to advise on trusts or UK residence/tax issues. We act for individuals who maintain a domicile overseas, for whom significant tax planning opportunities remain available. We also advise as to how clients’ UK residence and domicile position may impact on their liability to UK taxation, guide executors through domicile issues and engage with the UK tax authorities to ensure the correct UK tax regime is applied to our clients’ affairs. We increasingly advise those looking to invest in the UK - for example, by purchasing investment properties in London.

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We have a great deal of experience in drafting dual UK and foreign wills, and where necessary, we work with our network of international lawyers and offshore trust companies in order to ensure that a holistic approach is adopted to our clients’ affairs, both in the UK and internationally.

The team’s international capabilities, which continue to grow, are a strong selling point. A source describes the team as a ‘dynamic, thriving group that I love referring people to’. CHAMBERS & PARTNERS UK DIRECTORY

Arbitration and dispute resolution The market-leading Addleshaw Goddard team has experience of arbitrating under all of the principal arbitral rules, including those of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA), Stockholm Chamber of Commerce (SCC) and United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL). The team of 120 litigation lawyers advises on all aspects of the arbitral process, from strategic considerations prior to the commencement of proceedings through to the enforcement of a final award. Specialist advice can be provided for a range of issues including drafting an arbitration agreement, preparation of proceedings, selection and appointment of arbitrators, preparation of written submissions, advocacy services and enforcement. Clients are able to access a number of independently recognised solutions in litigation funding packages, including the innovative CONTROL scheme.

Credibility in the larger-scale litigation ... puts client service very highly. CHAMBERS UK DIRECTORY - DISPUTE RESOLUTION, LONDON

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KEY CONTACTS Martin Brown Head of Qatar office +974 4019 0302 [email protected] Martin is the Head of Addleshaw Goddard’s Qatar office and its Banking and Finance practice in Qatar. He acts on conventional and Sharia’h compliant matters and has extensive experience of applying the fundamental principles of the Sharia’h to commercial transactions. Martin is a specialist in international finance and acts for a variety of financial institutions in addition to sponsors and corporate borrowers. He has over 15 years broad based finance experience including cross-border syndicated financings, leveraged and acquisition finance, debt capital markets, fund formation and asset management, Islamic finance and restructurings. Martin advises on English law, Qatar law and the laws and regulations of the Qatar Financial Centre. Prior to relocating to Doha, Martin spent over a decade in London working in the Banking and Finance practices at other firms. He joined the London office of Denton Wilde Sapte (now Dentons) in 2007 and in 2008 he moved to Doha to head their Banking and Finance practice and also became the co-head of Dentons’ regional team. Since his arrival in Qatar, Martin has advised market leading Qatari and international financial institutions on many conventional and Sharia’h compliant transactions throughout the GCC, Africa and Europe and has acted on many of the most significant Qatari financial transactions of the past few years.

Hussein Damirji Head of MENA Local Markets +974 4019 0301 [email protected] Hussein is the Head of our Qatar office. He is a British national, a fluent Arabic speaker and a recognized leading practitioner in the Qatari legal market with extensive international experience. Hussein advises clients in relation to banking and securities law, corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions, media law and oil and gas law. He is qualified as a solicitor of the Senior Courts of England and Wales (1994). He is also qualified as a member of the New York Bar (1994) and of the District of Columbia Bar (2002), and is a member of the Iraq Bar Association (2003) and was a member of the Qatar Bar (2010). Hussein has been based in Qatar for over five years and previously a lawyer with Patton Boggs, a well-regarded major international firm - having trained and worked with one of the leading global law firms and subsequently establishing his own GCC based practice in Baghdad. Hussein’s practice in Doha has included advising a leading privately-owned bank in Qatar, advising a number of privately-held Qatari family-owned companies, advising and supporting a leading Dubai-based bank on its operations in Qatar and advising the Qatar National Food Security Programme. He has also advised on a wide range of corporate and commercial work for international clients and led a team that advised The First Investor on several funds including The First Investor GCC Equity Opportunities Fund, a Sharia’h compliant equity fund which was awarded “Best Investment Fund” by the “Bankers Middle East” Product Awards 2013. Hussein’s practice in Iraq has included advising numerous companies on establishing in Iraq and in a wide variety of fields including general commercial and registration, banking, oil services, customs and general tax advice. He has also acted as a general legal advisor to a range of businesses and some of their CEOs. For example, he acted for one of the successful bidders on its proposed bid for oil production services in Iraq. He also advised on a major hospitality project in the North of Iraq (advising on and negotiating the hotel management agreement and related agreements) and assisted a lead manager/broker in its involvement in a proposed IPO and potential capital market requirements - the first IPO in Iraq. He also recently assisted a non-Iraqi bank seeking to unfreeze its monies held in a number of Iraqi banks.

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John Coghlan Legal Director +9744019 0303 [email protected] John is a construction law specialist, based in Qatar, advising on all phases of international infrastructure and energy projects. He has advised Government Entities, Employer’s, Main Contractor’s and Consultants, in relation to both contentious and noncontentious matters, upon a broad spectrum of contracts including: NEC, FIDIC and JCT together with a number of bespoke contracts. Prior to becoming a lawyer John was a sub-contractor, in the construction industry within the UK, and has first hand experience of the practical issues stake holders encounter on a project. John, therefore, has over 20 years combined practical and legal experience in the projects and construction industry. This allows John to adopt a pragmatic and commercial approach to procurement, project support and dispute resolution in relation to high value and complex infrastructure and energy projects. John has been based in Qatar since 2011. In this time, he has gained a comprehensive understanding of the manner in which the Law of Qatar affects construction contracts and all phases of a project from inception to completion. Specifically, he has advised on the full range of Government standard form contracts in Qatar in both the infrastructure and energy sectors. Throughout his career John has been involved in a number of different international projects, throughout the Middle East, Africa, Central America and Europe, including: airports, hotels, canals, rail, shopping malls, reclamation works, universities, hospitals, water & power plants and the oil & gas sector.

Rafi Sajian Managing Associate +974 4019 0304 [email protected] Rafi Sajian is a Managing Associate in the firm’s office in Doha. Rafi is a corporate specialist and has extensive experience acting on corporate and financial transactions and provides substantial counsel to international clients on domestic and cross-border transactions, mergers and acquisitions, corporate compliance and governance, corporate establishment, restructuring & reorganization, joint ventures and securities matters. Rafi also advises on all aspects of Qatar and Lebanese laws with specific knowledge in the Trade, Companies, Real Estate, Civil, Penal and Labour Laws. Before joining Addleshaw Goddard, Rafi worked for five years with an international law firm in Qatar. During this time, Rafi gained considerable experience and knowledge of Qatar laws and practice and assisted international clients to establish and negotiate their presence in the country. Rafi has also advised major educational institutions in Qatar on contentious employment matters, and provided counsel on restructuring, licensing and compliance matters. Prior to moving to Doha in 2008, Rafi practiced in Lebanon for five years working for a prominent law firm in Lebanon and acted on contentious and non-contentious corporate, real-estate, and commercial matters for international and regional clients and litigated major claims before the Court of Cassation.

Randa Shiblaq Legal Advisor +974 4019 0307 [email protected] Randa Shiblaq is a Bilingual Legal Assistant at Addleshaw Goddard. Randa has been working in Qatar since 2011 starting as Legal Assistant for one of the largest retail companies in Qatar and then joined Addleshaw Goddard in 2013 as a bilingual English/Arabic Legal Assistant. As well as her in-house tasks to support the team, Randa also liaises with different governmental authorities in Qatar.

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aglaw.com Doha, Dubai, Hong Kong, Leeds, London, Manchester, Muscat, Singapore and Tokyo* *a formal alliance with Hashidate Law Office

© 2015 Addleshaw Goddard LLP. All rights reserved. Extracts may be copied with prior permission and provided their source is acknowledged. This document is for general information only. It is not legal advice and should not be acted or relied on as being so, accordingly Addleshaw Goddard disclaims any responsibility. It does not create a solicitor-client relationship between Addleshaw Goddard and any other person. Legal advice should be taken before applying any information in this document to any facts and circumstances. Addleshaw Goddard is an international legal practice carried on by Addleshaw Goddard LLP (a limited liability partnership registered in England & Wa les and authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority) and its affiliated undertakings. Addleshaw Goddard operates in the Dubai International Financial Centre through Addleshaw Goddard (Middle East) LLP (registered with and regulated by the DFSA), in the Qatar Financial Centre through Addleshaw Goddard (GCC) LLP (licensed by the QFCA), in Oman through Addleshaw Goddard (Middle East) LLP in association with Nasser Al Habsi & Saif Al Mamari Law Firm (licensed by the Oman Ministry of Justice) and in Hong Kong through Addleshaw Goddard (Hong Kong) LLP (a limited liability partnership registered in England & Wales and registered and regulated as a foreign law firm by the Law Society of Hong Kong) in association with Francis & Co. In Tokyo, legal services are offered through Addleshaw Goddard's formal alliance with Hashidate Law Office. A list of members/principals for each firm will be provided upon request. The term partner refers to any individual who is a member of any Addleshaw Goddard entity or association or an employee or consultant with equivalent standing and qualifications. If you prefer not to receive promotional material from us, please email us at [email protected]. For further information please consult our website www.addleshawgoddard.com or www.aglaw.com.