Highly commended: Eversheds
Finalists: Al Tamimi & Company • Bin Shabib & Associates

Simmons & Simmons showed an impressive track record in this sector, advising on competition laws in every Middle East country. The team is primarily based in the UAE and has been busy advising clients on the federal competition law, which has changed substantially.

Through the firm's sector-specific approach to competition law it has acted
for major pharmaceutical clients on retail price maintenance and horizontal and vertical agreements. In the technology, media and telecoms sector Simmons has been involved in discussions with the regulator around dominance and competition following the liberalisation of the market in Saudi Arabia.

The past year has been an extremely busy one for the firm's financial regulatory practice in the Middle East, where it has advised several financial institutions, asset managers and governments on various aspects of financial regulation. This includes acting for a large financial institution on investigations by the Capital Market Authority of Saudi Arabia as well as liaising closely with the Securities and Commodities Authority in the UAE to provide market and regulatory feedback.