Kirkland & Ellis to Launch Saudi Office
It becomes the latest major firm to leverage lucrative opportunities in the Middle East.
June 15, 2023 at 12:03 PM
2 minute read
Law Firm Office Launches and ClosuresKirkland & Ellis has become the latest major law firm to announce the opening of an office in Saudi Arabia.
For the launch, the world's largest law firm by revenue has hired a partner from Latham & Watkins and two local partners from White & Case ahead of the office's opening, according to a person at the firm.
Latham corporate partner Noor Al-Fawzan will join from Latham's affiliate Riyadh office, while Waad Alkurini and Manal Al-Musharaf join from White & Case.
Kirkland joins a number of other law firms to set up bases in the region, following a rule change on how international firms can operate in the country came into effect earlier this year.
After being granted licences by the Saudi government, Latham, Clifford Chance and Herbert Smith Freehills all announced that they were establishing a Saudi presence in March.
Earlier this year, Dentons and Greenberg Traurig also solidified their presences in the region. Operating in association with The Law Firm of Wael A. Alissa, Dentons has offices in Riyadh and Jeddah.
According to a Law.com analysis, in April, Kirkland advised on just one of the largest 20 deals in the preceding 15 months, despite being the most frequent adviser on Europe's biggest buyouts of 2021. In 2021, Kirkland & Ellis opened an office in Brussels in a bid to boost its European antitrust offering.
A Kirkland spokesperson commented: "Riyadh is an important market for international business and one of the world's fastest growing economies. Many of our clients are active and growing in Saudi Arabia, and we are actively considering our options and client needs there."
Latham had not responded to requests for comment at the time of publication.
White & Case declined to comment.
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
You Might Like
View AllJapan’s TMI Associates Lands In Brussels, Expands European Offering
Japanese Boutique Marks First Foray Overseas With Singapore Opening
British Disputes Boutique Seladore Hires HSF Lawyer, Plans Singapore Launch
Cracking Canada: How International Law Firms Penetrate the Country's Legal Market
6 minute readLaw Firms Mentioned
Trending Stories
- 1Brown Rudnick Picks Up Bochner Patent Trial Team in Houston
- 2HSF's American Dream: What Will a U.S. Merger Mean For its Asia Practice?
- 3Kirkland Tech Transactions Partner Heads to Polsinelli
- 4A Government Lawyer's Tough Day at the Supreme Court
- 5Big Law Expected To Follow Milbank's Lead With Associate Year-End Bonuses
Who Got The Work
Michael G. Bongiorno, Andrew Scott Dulberg and Elizabeth E. Driscoll from Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr have stepped in to represent Symbotic Inc., an A.I.-enabled technology platform that focuses on increasing supply chain efficiency, and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The case, filed Oct. 2 in Massachusetts District Court by the Brown Law Firm on behalf of Stephen Austen, accuses certain officers and directors of misleading investors in regard to Symbotic's potential for margin growth by failing to disclose that the company was not equipped to timely deploy its systems or manage expenses through project delays. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton, is 1:24-cv-12522, Austen v. Cohen et al.
Who Got The Work
Edmund Polubinski and Marie Killmond of Davis Polk & Wardwell have entered appearances for data platform software development company MongoDB and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The action, filed Oct. 7 in New York Southern District Court by the Brown Law Firm, accuses the company's directors and/or officers of falsely expressing confidence in the company’s restructuring of its sales incentive plan and downplaying the severity of decreases in its upfront commitments. The case is 1:24-cv-07594, Roy v. Ittycheria et al.
Who Got The Work
Amy O. Bruchs and Kurt F. Ellison of Michael Best & Friedrich have entered appearances for Epic Systems Corp. in a pending employment discrimination lawsuit. The suit was filed Sept. 7 in Wisconsin Western District Court by Levine Eisberner LLC and Siri & Glimstad on behalf of a project manager who claims that he was wrongfully terminated after applying for a religious exemption to the defendant's COVID-19 vaccine mandate. The case, assigned to U.S. Magistrate Judge Anita Marie Boor, is 3:24-cv-00630, Secker, Nathan v. Epic Systems Corporation.
Who Got The Work
David X. Sullivan, Thomas J. Finn and Gregory A. Hall from McCarter & English have entered appearances for Sunrun Installation Services in a pending civil rights lawsuit. The complaint was filed Sept. 4 in Connecticut District Court by attorney Robert M. Berke on behalf of former employee George Edward Steins, who was arrested and charged with employing an unregistered home improvement salesperson. The complaint alleges that had Sunrun informed the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection that the plaintiff's employment had ended in 2017 and that he no longer held Sunrun's home improvement contractor license, he would not have been hit with charges, which were dismissed in May 2024. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer, is 3:24-cv-01423, Steins v. Sunrun, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Greenberg Traurig shareholder Joshua L. Raskin has entered an appearance for boohoo.com UK Ltd. in a pending patent infringement lawsuit. The suit, filed Sept. 3 in Texas Eastern District Court by Rozier Hardt McDonough on behalf of Alto Dynamics, asserts five patents related to an online shopping platform. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap, is 2:24-cv-00719, Alto Dynamics, LLC v. boohoo.com UK Limited.
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250