Corporate Counsel Middle East Awards Legal Department of the Year (Large Team): Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing, Government of Dubai
Pictured: awards host Shereen Mitwalli; Shannon Rogers; awards judge Dr Markus Federle, general counsel, Samena Capital Investments
June 15, 2016 at 07:09 PM
2 minute read
Finalists: Commercial Bank of Dubai; Dubai Police Legal Affairs Department; First Gulf Bank; HSBC; SEDCO Holding; Tyco.
The Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing's legal team was praised by the judges for having "come a long way in a short space of time".
Its success at bringing legal work back in-house and therefore achieving subsequent savings in fees was deemed to be outstanding.
The department's vision is to attract 20 million visitors per year to Dubai by 2020. Sahia Ahmad, former general counsel of Emirates Investment Authority and Dubai World, was hired in August 2014 to set up the department. Since then, it has grown to seven members.
The team has improved processes by developing template agreements and implementing a contract tracker system to ensure the appropriate allocation of resources during peak times.
Key projects include providing legal support for the Dubai Green Tourism Programme, which encourages hotels to reduce the environmental impact of their operations, and the Dubai Historical District.
The department is also working with the Dubai Economic Department to restructure the licensing system for hotels and tourism companies, and participates in the review of legislation at local and federal levels, using channels established with the Dubai Supreme Legislation Committee.
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