Middle East

Dewey Raids Patton Boggs for 2 Lawyers to Open Qatar Office

Two lawyers from the Doha office of Patton Boggs, in Qatar, are joining Dewey & LeBoeuf, to help open an office there for their new firm. William Cattan is joining Dewey as a partner and Joanna Addison will be a senior associate, the law firm reports in a press release…

Nov 11, 2008 6:08 PM CST

Another US Law Firm Opens in Dubai: Kilpatrick Stockton

Joining an eclectic group of U.S.-based international law firms, Atlanta’s Kilpatrick Stockton is opening a small office in Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates. “The two-lawyer office is starting with several U.S. clients that also are newcomers to the region, with the goal of also representing local participants in the…

Nov 7, 2008 5:18 PM CST

More Child Brides in Middle East Seek Divorce, But Judges May Be Reluctant

A 10-year-old Yemeni girl, Nujood Ali, made international headlines earlier this year when she went to court on her own in a successful effort to seek a divorce. But now that other girls are following her lead, it appears that at least some judges are reluctant to grant divorces to…

Oct 30, 2008 9:52 PM CDT

UK Couple Gets 3 Months in Dubai Beach Sex Case

Two citizens of the United Kingdom who allegedly were caught having sex this summer on a beach in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, got a light sentence by local standards—three months in jail, followed by deportation. As discussed in an earlier ABAJournal.com post, such conduct is taken very seriously in the…

Oct 16, 2008 5:20 PM CDT

U of Utah Gets $2.5M US Grant to Promote Independent Iraq Judiciary

The law school at the University of Utah has been awarded a $2.5 million one-year grant from the U.S. State Department to help forge an independent judiciary in Iraq, the Salt Lake Tribune reports. “We can’t reform the Iraqi system, but we can inform the reformers of the system. We’re…

Oct 9, 2008 11:54 PM CDT

Iraq Prime Minister Said to Oust Judge to Ensure Saddam Death Sentence

Fearing that Saddam Hussein would not receive a death sentence at his trial, Iraq’s prime minister forced one of five judges presiding in his case to resign only days before sentencing, a Canadian lawyer told the New York Times. According to the lawyer’s version of events, Prime Minister Nuri Kamal…

Sep 25, 2008 5:33 PM CDT

Thailand Prime Minister Broke the Law by Hosting Cooking Show, Court Rules

Thailand’s Constitutional Court has ruled that the country’s prime minister broke the law by hosting a cooking show. The court ordered Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej to resign because he had broken a law barring cabinet ministers from working for private companies, the International Herald Tribune reports. His party said Samak…

Sep 9, 2008 1:55 PM CDT

Thousands of Pakistani Lawyers Protest Over Judges

Thousands of Pakistani lawyers blocked roads in several cities today to protest the country’s failure to reinstate most of the judges removed from office by former President Pervez Musharraf. Lawyers dressed in black suits blocked roads in all major cities, Reuters reports. They chanted slogans and waved flags as they…

Aug 28, 2008 10:53 AM CDT

New Role in Managing Law Firm Risk Exposure: the CRO

Once upon a time, the possibility of a malpractice suit being filed against them was pretty much the only risk that law firms had to worry about, and, since lawyers were reluctant to sue other lawyers, they were a rarity. Today, facing a panoply of potential pitfalls, including the Sarbanes-Oxley…

Aug 26, 2008 3:26 PM CDT

Acquitted Pakistani Woman’s Plight: Living in a Shelter Because She Can’t Live Alone

Naheed Arshad, a Pakistani woman, says she has been unfairly accused of adultery. Despite an acquittal, she has few options to start her life anew, the Washington Post reports. Human rights lawyers say her plight is all too common in a nation where laws against adultery and abduction for sex…

Aug 21, 2008 11:55 AM CDT

Lawyer is Among Would-Be Olympics Protesters Detained by China

Six would-be protesters in China were detained after they indicated plans to demonstrate in areas set aside for that purpose near the Olympics. One of them is Zhang Wei, who filled out a form for a protest permit to raise objections to the planned demolition of her home, the New…

Aug 14, 2008 4:31 PM CDT

Baker & McKenzie Breaks $2B; Firm’s Revenue Rises 20%

Despite the struggling U.S. economy, Baker & McKenzie has had a banner year. For the fiscal year that ended in June, it booked total global revenue of $2.19 billion, breaking the $2 billion—and the 1 billion pound—barrier for the first time. Last year, the megafirm, which got its start in…

Aug 14, 2008 4:21 PM CDT

Latham’s Middle-East Trifecta

Within weeks, Latham & Watkins is expected to open not just one new office in the Middle East, but three, spurred by what it says were client requests to do so. The new offices, in Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Qatar, are the latest example of why what was once a…

Jul 16, 2008 7:49 PM CDT

UK Woman Could Get 6 Years for Sex on Dubai Beach

A 30-year-old Englishwoman could be sentenced to six years in jail if she is convicted of having sex on a Dubai beach last week. Allegedly caught in the act with a British tourist by a passing police officer, Michelle Palmer, who manages a publishing firm in Dubai, could be sentenced…

Jul 9, 2008 4:48 PM CDT

‘Eliot Ness of Iraq’ Wins Asylum

It was a great Independence Day gift. On July 3, Judge Radhi Hamza al-Radhi, “the Eliot Ness of Iraq,” learned that the Department of Homeland Security had granted him asylum. After the 2003 invasion, American advisers in Baghdad insisted that Radhi head Iraq’s version of the FBI. Radhi had a…

Jul 7, 2008 10:11 PM CDT