Eversheds branches into Saudi Arabia

Eversheds is opening in Saudi Arabia through an alliance with Saudi practice Hani Al Qurashi Law Firm after discussions with four potential sponsors over the last 18 months.

Eversheds Islamic banking head Amjad Hussain will become managing partner of the Riyadh office, dividing his time between there and Doha. The firm will also second a mid-ranking associate there.

“The Middle East is a key market for us,” Hussain said. “We have offices in Abu Dhabi and Doha and the third strand was always going to be Saudi as we had clients asking for Saudi advice.”

Twenty-lawyer Hani Al Qurashi’s core practice area is litigation, but in recent years it has sought to move into corporate and commercial work. International clients include American Express.

The firm has already worked with Eversheds on banking, commercial, corporate and real estate ­matters in Saudi Arabia.

Client relation officer at Hani Al Qurashi, Yaser Abu Shemala, said: “On M&A and IPO Eversheds is huge steps ahead of us. This opens new horizons for us to work with multinational corporations. We also have local clients that have an interest in global work.”

Other firms that have opened in Saudi over the past year include Clyde & Co, which teamed up with local firm Abdulaziz Al Bosaily, DLA Piper with Alaa Naji, and Herbert Smith with Al Ghazzawi Professional Association.