18 October 2010
The first Shariah compliant legal consultancy begins operations in
DubaiDubai: Agha & Co (the "Firm"), a Shariah compliant legal consultancy established by Mr. Oliver Ali Agha, commenced operation in Dubai in May 2010 and is scheduled to have a formal office inauguration on October 25, 2010. &previously, Mr. Agha and Dr. Saeed Mohammed Al-Shamsi established Agha & Shamsi, an affiliated firm, in Abu Dhabi.& The Firm and its affiliate are said to be the first Shariah compliant legal consultancies established globally.& As a Shariah compliant firm, Agha & Co may not represent parties in impermissible transactions (such as those involving interest, gambling, alcohol or tobacco production). &Furthermore, its conduct and practice areas are governed by a mandate from its Shariah Board that has some of the industry's leading Shariah scholars (Sheikh Abdul Sattar Abu Ghuddah, Dr. Mohammed Bin Ali Al Gari and Sheikh Esam Ishaq), providing rulings for the Firm and its clients.
Agha & Co's strategic position in the UAE, fast becoming a major commercial hub for the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), with a network of affiliation arrangements with leading law firms both internationally (in the United States with pillsbury Winthrop Shaw pittman LLp) and in the Middle East region, enables it to combine global reach with local knowledge. &Founding partner Mr. Agha notes, "Dubai is a key center of commerce in the Middle East - it has a well-developed infrastructure and a dynamic and responsive leadership that evinces a savvy commercial ethos. Therefore, we have chosen it as a key operational hub."
Michael Schumaecker, leader of&pillsbury's finance practice, notes: "Having worked with Oliver Agha and lawyers in his team for about two years on numerous transactions, pillsbury has been delighted with our relationship with Agha & Shamsi&in Abu Dhabi and we look forward to expanding that relationship into Dubai with Agha & Co.& When our clients need specialist advice in the MENA region or in relation to Islamic finance globally, it is very comforting for us&to&know that we have&the support of the highest quality lawyers with&substantial expertise in the region and in their specialty practice areas. &We look forward to developing our institutional relationship and continuing to offer our clients the highest quality counsel in a responsive time-frame."
The Firm's lawyers, previously having lead practice areas at top Am Law 50 and top tier English firms, are well-respected in the fields of Islamic Finance, Islamic Law, Corporate (including cross-border M&A), projects, project Finance, Energy, public-private placements (ppps), Commercial Transactions, Capital Markets, Islamic Funds & private Equity, Restructuring, Insurance (Takaful), Arbitration and Dispute Resolution, and have been featured in the Chambers & partners' Global Guide, The Legal 500, ALB Hot 100, Who's Who Legal directory (UAE Special Report), and The Legal Media Group's Best of the Best Expert Guides. &They have also been featured in the Islamic Finance News Guides, International Financial Law Review (IFLR) magazine, BRief Magazine and Meed Magazine, among others.
Oliver Ali Agha, a US-qualified attorney, formerly with leading international firms, and the only international lawyer on the Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI) Board, will serve as Managing partner.& Claire Grainger, a seasoned transactional and dispute resolution attorney previously with leading English firms, is a partner who heads the projects and Dispute Resolution practice.& Siraj Ahmed, a US-qualified attorney previously with a top Am Law 50 firm, is a senior legal consultant.& Three lawyers and three legal assistants, among other staff, provide support to the senior lawyers.
The Firm's clients include leading US and European blue chip corporations, Islamic funds, governments, Islamic banks and the leading Islamic mortgage finance companies in the UAE and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.& Some notable client wins include Deutsche Gulf Finance (a joint venture Shariah-compliant home financing company owned 40% by Deutsche Bank AG's Riyadh BRanch and 60% by a group of prominent Saudi-based investors, led by Fahad Abdullah Abdulaziz Al Rajhi), Amlak Finance (largest publicly held Islamic finance company in the UAE), First Gulf Bank (Islamic Division) and leading Saudi corporates.& Furthermore, the Firm's lawyers have substantial experience in advising the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private lending and investment advisory arm of the World Bank Group, on many matters globally and in salient regional matters, as well.
paul Melotto, Chief Financial Officer of Deutsche Gulf Finance, notes, "Agha's firm is the best firm we have dealt with by far, having previously used other top tier firms, and we consider the firm a strategic partner. &They understand every issue from a business, Shariah and legal perspective, while other firms are only one-dimensional."& Sulafa Abushaban, Senior Legal Counsel of First Gulf Bank, remarks, "Mr. Agha BRings seasoned transactional skills coupled with comprehensive Shariah knowledge and delivers an excellent quality product. &His responsiveness and understanding of our needs is unrivalled in the market. &He is a key person in his firm on whom we rely on for our complex Islamic representations."& Sultan Al-Dhaher, Executive Manager at South Steel Company in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, remarks, "We have used Mr. Agha for four years now and have remained loyal to him as he and his team deliver an unrivalled product from our perspective in the Saudi market - they BRing deep transactional knowledge and an encyclopaedic knowledge of Saudi law and provide excellent quality legal counsel including refined and smooth negotiation skills that we rely on for all of our complex cross border M&A and project financing transactions."&
"We look forward to developing Agha & Co as a firm committed to excellence in the practice of law - providing counsel responsively and in a commercially and ethically considered context," said Mr. Agha.
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For more information, please see www.aghaandco.com or contact:
Elizabeth BRown
Agha & Co
Tel: +971 4 447 8989
Fax: +971 4 447 3996
Email: elizabeth.BRown@aghaandco.com
© press Release 2010
