Press office

Chaired by Eversheds partner Amjad Hussain, the forum focused on key aspects of commercial contracts based on Qatari law in the run up to the Qatar World Cup, dispute resolution in Qatar and what makes an effective in-house legal team.

Amjad Hussain, Partner at international law firm Eversheds, said:

“This forum was an opportunity for in-house lawyers to meet their peers and discussed the pressing legal issues that we are having to grapple on a daily basis and the skills needed to overcome these.

“Over the last few years we have seen the role of the in-house legal team become very important. During the recession, businesses tried to find ways to save money and bringing in legal expertise was a common way of reducing external legal spend. Over time, however, businesses realised that they could respond more quickly to the fast changing marketplace if they had their risk and legal teams sitting in strategic meetings as part of the management team.

“Now that the world economy is starting to recover, companies are keen to learn lessons from the past and decision makers are relying on their in-house lawyers to make sense of the small print in contracts.

“With the Qatar World Cup on the horizon, the region is going to see rapid growth in the number of contracts that will need to be negotiated and signed and then managed for the next 12 years, which will reinforce the positions of in-house lawyers as key decision makers in management board rooms.”

“It is encouraging to see such a good attendance from the legal departments of many of the key businesses and organisations in Qatar and we look forward to repeating this forum again soon.”

ENDS