Middle East

The Muscat office is a centre of excellence in infrastructure, project finance, energy, corporate/commercial and banking, as well as its premier litigation and dispute resolution practice.

The Dubai office has a particularly strong corporate group and is also notable for the breadth of its disputes experience, including international arbitration and DIFC and ADGM Court litigation. These core practice areas are complemented by experience in privatization, insurance, shipping and port development, construction, tourism, real estate, employment, and public procurement.

Our clients operate in many different sectors including tourism, food & beverage, real estate, energy, manufacturing, trading and distribution, banking and financial services, commodities, natural resources and transportation.

Sovereign Representation in the Middle East

Curtis is known for the breadth of its sovereign representation practice in the Middle East. We have long represented several GCC governments on public international law matters and investment treaty arbitrations. Our international trade team, with members based in the region, has had notable successes in the Middle East. We have represented Middle Eastern countries in a range of proceedings at the WTO, as well as representing Middle East based exporters to the United States as defendants in trade cases brought against them by the U.S. Department of Commerce on behalf of domestic manufacturers. Curtis also advises on sanctions law, which is particularly relevant in this region.

Corporate

The full service corporate and commercial team gives both international and local law advice. The Dubai and Muscat offices provides the firm with an ideal location for serving clients doing business in Oman and the UAE, as well as in the wider Middle East region. The corporate transactional team advises on regional cross-border mergers as well as UAE and Oman-based acquisitions and disposals. Our corporate lawyers also advise on MBOs and venture capital investments involving the region’s leading private equity and venture capital funds.

Dispute Resolution

All of our Dubai-based dispute resolution lawyers are highly trained international practitioners with extensive local expertise. The team regularly practices before all of the most important arbitration centres, including the DIFC-LCIA, Dubai International Arbitration Centre (DIAC) and the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) and with governing laws including UAE law, DIFC law and English law. The team has been active in the DIFC courts for claimants and Curtis is one of the few firms also to have conducted cases in the Abu Dhabi Global Market courts (ADGM).

Curtis Muscat’s dispute resolution team is highly regarded as a top-ranked practice in Oman. With over 35 years’ collective experience, the team offers rare strength in arbitration and litigation in Oman, with both international and local law experts.

Energy and Projects

The top-flight energy and projects team’s experience spans oil and gas, electricity, water, waste water, industrial and renewables sectors as well as infrastructure and privatization projects. Curtis also has a depth of experience in the electricity sector, having advised on the Arabian Gulf’s first IPP and also on aspects of the power sector unbundling and privatization process legislated for by the Sector Law.