Akin Gump Opens Office in Abu Dhabi

(Washington) – Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP, whose lawyers have been advising clients in the Middle East for decades, has opened an office in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (U.A.E.), the firm announced today.

The new office will add considerable depth to the firm’s international footprint, expanding to 13 the number of offices the firm has around the world. The new office is fully integrated, and will compliment and work closely, with all of the firm’s global offices.

The new office will build on the firm’s established international reputation, strength and resources by advising clients within and outside the region in key practice areas, including global transactions, private equity, investment funds, communications, international dispute resolution, international tax, media and entertainment, capital markets, energy, and project finance and development.

“Akin Gump’s new office in Abu Dhabi represents a significant opportunity for the firm and its clients, given the Emirate’s important position in the Middle East, the speed with which it is growing commercially and the pace at which it is attracting companies and investors alike,” commented R. Bruce McLean, Akin Gump’s chairman. “This is a long-term commitment made in response to demand from clients as well as a logical extension of our business platform internationally.”

The firm has moved six Akin Gump attorneys to start the office, and has sufficient space and plans for significant growth in the near future. The attorneys currently located in Abu Dhabi include Natasha Kohne, who has relocated from New York to be the managing partner of the office. Ms. Kohne will be supported by corporate partners Lee Kolodny and Elisabeth Cappuyns, who have relocated from Los Angeles and New York, respectively. An additional three associates from New York and London have relocated to Abu Dhabi to make up the full complement of those who will work in the Abu Dhabi office from the outset. It is anticipated that over the next three to four years the office will grow to 20 lawyers or more.

Notes to editors

Founded in 1945, Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP, a leading international law firm, numbers more than 950 lawyers and advisors in 13 offices in the United States, Europe, Asia and the Middle East.

In addition to the firm’s nine offices across the United States, Akin Gump’s international practice is centered around offices in London, Moscow, Beijing and Abu Dhabi.

The international offices have established reputations for representing local, international and US clients in connection with M&A transactions, private equity transactions, energy project development and finance, and other cross-border transactions and investments. In addition, the firm is well known for advising companies in emerging markets in equity and debt capital markets, including listings on the London Stock Exchange, AIM and Euronext. It is also actively involved in the newly established Specialist Funds Market of the London Stock Exchange.

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