At the recent Middle East Corporate Counsel Forum, delegates were told now is the time for in-house lawyers to bridge the gap between the Middle East and its Western counterparts. Anthony Parker reports

If the old adage stands true that in adversity there is opportunity, in-house lawyers in the Middle East have never had such a good opportunity to entrench their role as trusted legal adviser.

As the global economic slump tightens its grip on the Middle East, in-house legal teams have experienced increased pressure to scale back on resources and mitigate risk. But while there are undoubtedly challenges ahead, in-house lawyers should seize the chance to close the gap on their Western counterparts in Europe and the US, delegates at Legal Week's second annual Middle East Corporate Counsel Forum were told.

Speaking at the conference last month, which was attended by the region's top in-house and private practice lawyers, Jumeirah Group chief legal officer and conference chairman Robert Swade told attendees: "The contribution that can be made by the in-house legal team in the Middle East has never been greater, and this will continue to develop. [We will] continue to provide high quality and pragmatic legal advice to remain as trusted legal advisers."

Director of macroeconomics and statistics at the Dubai International Financial Centre, Dr Fabio Scacciavillani, echoed Swade's sentiments. Opening the conference, he outlined the stark reality of the current global downturn, adding that it will signal a shift away from the economic dominance of the west. He told delegates that the downturn could signal an opportunity for Gulf countries as long as the economic conditions were liberal enough to allow business to capitalise. However, he cautioned: "The shock waves have been too powerful, and to work out the consequence of the crisis will take time, so the end is not in sight."

Attendees spoke of increasing recognition of the Middle East as a legal centre, which is helping to attract and retain capital in the region. Looking into the evolving dispute resolution system in the Middle East, court registrar at the DIFC Courts, Mark Beer, said: "The region's justice systems are becoming more efficient and more transparent, with an enhanced focus on the rule of law"

Continued evolution of the in-house legal role

When it comes to the role of general counsel during the downturn, an expert panel including legal heads of Jumeirah Group, Unilever and Abu Dhabi Investment Company agreed that lawyers' roles should be that of a proactive business partner rather than policeman. This has led to a more pre-emptive approach to risk management and more hands on involvement with business strategy.

Abu Dhabi Investment Company's chief legal officer Stephen Swanson explained: "As teams begin to grow and evolve, you have to become a manager of teams and people. This is something that the legal sector has not been particularly good at… good lawyers are not necessarily good managers."

Julia Chain, chief executive officer at H4 Partners, added that legal teams are far more proactive and are becoming like value-creating profit centres in their own right. Marketing, sales, regulation and risk are all areas that a legal department should sit across, and general counsel should not draw up a business plan for legal until understanding the plan for all of the other business units, she said.

Pavel Klimov, Unisys UK EMEA general counsel, compared the general counsel role to that of a "fire fighting role" in the current business environment. He commented: "Now is a great opportunity for in-house lawyers to demonstrate their leadership skills, clarity of thought and ability to find creative solutions to tackle business problems."

There can often be a lack of understanding between senior management and the legal function which requires political, marketing and sales skills to overcome the reluctance of senior management. The panel stressed that risk management starts at the top and should involve every level: it is up to general counsel to help themselves and their business by getting more involved.

"Get off email and get out of your office," Swanson told attendees. "Getting in front of your business colleagues will give you valuable information."