Finalists: Al Tamimi & Company; BSA Ahmad Bin Hezeem & Associates; Charles Russell Speechlys; CMS, DWF; Hadef & Partners (Highly Commended); HFW; The Bench.

Pinsent Masons clinched the Real Estate Team of the Year award for guiding Meydan Group through the development of a giant luxury shopping centre, hotel and leisure complex in Dubai's Mohammed Bin Rashid City.

Led by partner Philip Corfield Smith, the firm advised Meydan on a wide range of matters relating to the project (which is slated for opening in late 2019 or early 2020). That included construction contracts for the mall's dancing fountains, agreements with hotel operators, negotiating lease documents with anchor tenants and implementing an automated system for ongoing lease admin (delivering ongoing cost savings for the client).

Given the tight deadline to meet the scheduled opening (and pressures on Meydan to stay within budget on legal spend), Pinsent Masons designed a number of technological solutions to satisfy those targets, such as automated template docs to speed up the tenant negotiation process.

The firm is also implementing an extranet system that, once the mall is open, will give Meydan real-time access to reports on current tenancies, allowing it to better manage occupancy and negotiations with any potential new tenants.

"Impressive array of services and expertise being pulled together in a manner that will benefit the client in years to come," a judge commented.

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