Lori Baker

Vice President- Legal & Director of Data Protection, Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC)

Lori Baker, FIP, Member of the Editorial Board of the Journal of Data Protection and Privacy is an experienced attorney with expertise in data protection and regulatory compliance, as well as broad practice in commercial contracting. She is qualified in both the USA (in the states of New Jersey and Pennsylvania) and the UK, and is a Fellow of Information Privacy as certified by the International Association of Privacy Professionals. Lori now provides data protection and security strategy and support in one of the leading financial centers in the MEASA region, while in her own time she writes and speaks on various data protection and compliance topics.

Prior to relocating to Dubai in 2016, Lori was based in London, UK for 10 years, having worked most recently for Fieldfisher LLP in the technology and outsourcing team as a senior privacy and cybersecurity associate. She held in-house roles as Senior Compliance and Privacy Counsel at Dun & Bradstreet, Head of Ethics and Compliance at Orange Business Services and Global Regulatory/Privacy Specialist at BT Global Services.

Lori attended DeSales University, receiving a Bachelor of Arts in politics with a minor in philosophy, followed by Widener University School of Law (the Delaware Law School), where she was awarded a Juris Doctor with an emphasis in international business transactions. While at Widener, Lori enrolled in the Geneva International Law Institute, directed by instructors from the WTO, the UN and other international organisations.

Theuns van de Merwe

Partner, CWB Legal

For more than a decade, Theuns has served as counsel for some the largest businesses in the world advising on IP licensing, strategy, risk assessment, clearance, prosecution, litigation, marketing, and alternative dispute resolution work. Theuns advises in a wide range of industry sectors, including in entertainment, consumer goods, cosmetics, clothing and apparel, technology, hospitality, real estate, tourism, food and beverage, manufacturing, and construction.

Dr Majdouline Scheit

Corporate Counsel, Alghanim Industries

DR MAJDOULINE SCHEIT is a Lebanese-qualified lawyer with nine years of experience. She earned a master’s degree in International Business Law from Filiere Francophone De Droit in Lebanon with an accreditation from the University of Aix-Marseille III in France.

She subsequently earned a PhD in International Law from the Lebanese Doctorate School of Law and Political Science with a focus on the joint development agreements for common offshore oil & gas deposits.

She has taught Energy and Environmental Law at the University of Phoenicia in Lebanon. Before joining Alghanim Industries, Majdouline was a private practice lawyer and provided regular support to companies and in-house legal teams across corporate transactional matters, commercial contracts and other compliance and regulatory matters.

Sheila Shadmand

Partner-in-Charge, Jones Day

Sheila Shadmand is the Partner-in-Charge of Jones Day’s Middle East Region. She specialises in investigations, arbitration, and cross-border litigation. Over her nearly 25 years of practice, she has defended and counseled multinational companies in anti-corruption, anti-money laundering, anti-boycott, and sanctions matters, including defending companies facing enforcement action by the DOJ, SEC, OFAC, and/ or the DFSA. She has led investigations in over 30 countries throughout the Middle East, Africa, and Southeast Asia region. In addition, Sheila has served as counsel or arbitrator in numerous high-value ICC, LCIA, DIFC-LCIA, and DIAC arbitrations, and appears as an advocate in the DIFC Courts. She was lead counsel in International Electro-Mechanical v Al Fattan, which provided a pro-arbitration foundational precedent in the DIFC Courts. Sheila is recognised in Chambers (Band 1) and The Legal 500.

Alastair Young

Office Managing Partner, Dentons

In January 2017 Alastair Young relocated to Dubai from the Dentons’ London office where he had been based since joining the firm in 2011. Alastair leads the Middle East Disputes practice where he has been practising since 2007. He has a wealth of experience acting for international companies operating in the region. He specialises in the resolution of engineering and construction disputes. His practice involves all forms of dispute resolution, ranging from international arbitration to litigation in the Technology and Construction Court to statutory/contractual adjudication and ADR (including mediation and expert determination).

Jonathan Silver

Head of Middle East & Africa, Clyde & Co

Jonathan Silver has over 39 years of experience working in the Middle East in the areas of international mergers & acquisitions, private equity, banking and finance, restructuring and foreign direct investment. He has worked with clients in most business sectors including insurance, financial services, international trade, energy, construction, shipping and commodities. He has led numerous transaction teams assisting clients to navigate the regulatory complexities of multi-jurisdictional transactions. Jonathan is the head of Clyde & Co’s operations in the Middle East and Africa, holding this role since the merger of Clyde & Co with his own practice in 1989. He is a member of the firm’s MEA Regional Board and of the firm’s Global Management Board.

Samer Qudah

Managing Partner, Al Tamimi & Company

Samer Qudah is the Managing Partner of Al Tamimi & Company and also heads the firm’s Corporate Structuring Department. Samer has extensive experience of over two decades in structuring and restructuring entities and businesses for clients operating throughout the Gulf and the broader Middle East region. He has wide ranging experience advising major blue chip organisations, financial institutions, government and semi-government concerns, SMEs, private equity funds, FMCGs and TMT companies on a wide range of issues, in particular M&A transactions, legal due diligence, joint ventures, drafting and negotiating commercial agreements, agency law issues, regulatory affairs, electronic transactions and other corporate law related issues.

Mohammed AlSuwaidi

Managing Partner, Al Suwaidi & Company

Mohammed R Alsuwaidi was admitted to all courts of the UAE in 1986 and founded Al Suwaidi & Company in 1997. Previously, Mohammed was the Head of Legal for Emirates General Petroleum Corporation. He was President of the Organisation of Young Arab Lawyers and was Deputy Chairman of the UAE Jurists Association. He has been appointed as an arbitrator in more than 70 arbitrations to date and is often called upon as a UAE law expert on international arbitrations.

Linda Fitz-Alan

Registrar and Chief Executive of ADGM Courts

Linda Fitz-Alan joined ADGM Courts as Registrar and Chief Executive in October 2015. Linda is responsible for leading the administration and operations of ADGM Courts, particularly in the delivery of its comprehensive electronic services, as well as playing a key role in the management of the cases and ADGM’s dispute resolution services.

Linda has more than 30 years’ legal experience, previously serving as CEO and Principal Registrar of the Supreme Court of New South Wales, Australia. At the Supreme Court, she was responsible for the successful implementation of the Court’s electronic filing and case management capability, the design, refurbishment and consolidation of the Court’s civil and criminal Registries as well as the development of its human resources and training. Linda has also been a Partner of two Australian law firms and held a senior legal position with a large commercial insurer, located in New York City, USA.

Lina Adlouni

Lawyer, Arbitrator and Mediator, Al-Yaqout & AlFouzan Legal Group

• Licensed in Kuwait as a practicing lawyer before the High Appeal, Cassation and Constitutional Courts.
• Acting as an independent legal consultant to KDIPA /MOCI for several assignments above is with the World Bank & IFC (International Finance Corporation) for the project of reforming the local legislation process of “Doing business in Kuwait” through legal analysis, contribution towards researching the reform of legislation processes in Kuwait.
• Renders over than 20 years of professional legal experience in all aspects of Kuwaiti law including Commercial, Corporate Insolvency, Banking, Capital Markets and Investment Companies.
• Provides her expertise lies specifically in the following areas; Private Equity, Commercial laws, Corporate Governance, Corporate Finance, Portfolio and Asset Management, Incorporation of Companies, Investment Agreements, Securitization, Debt Capital Market and Sell & Buy Swaps, Restructure Corporates, Intellectual Property and IT, Real Estate Project Development and Property, Bankruptcy, Liquidation, Conventional and Islamic Finance, Franchise agreements, Agency & Distributorship, Foreign Investment and Taxation.