BCLP has hired intellectual property and technology lawyer Zayd Alathari as a partner in Riyadh from the Saudi Water Authority, adding patent agency, public-sector and in-house experience to its Saudi Arabian practice.
Alathari joins the firm’s corporate department after just under two years at the Saudi Water Authority as a senior expert supporting research and innovation governance, intellectual property and commercialisation frameworks, as well as strategic partnerships.
He brings more than 25 years’ experience across international private practice, senior in-house roles and public-sector innovation. His practice covers IP strategy, technology transactions, licensing, commercialisation, strategic collaborations and joint ventures for businesses across Saudi Arabia and the wider Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).
BCLP launched in Saudi Arabia in 2025 with offices in Riyadh and Al Khobar. The firm, which has operated in the Middle East for nearly 20 years, chiefly in the UAE, said the appointment would strengthen its technology and IP capabilities.
“I am delighted to join BCLP at such an important time for Saudi Arabia and the wider GCC,” Alathari said. “Having spent much of my career working within major organisations in the region, I understand firsthand the business priorities, organisational challenges and operational realities that clients face.
“What excites me about BCLP is the opportunity to combine that perspective with the firm’s international capabilities to deliver practical solutions that support our clients’ growth, innovation and long-term success.”
He added: “I am equally committed to contributing to the region’s development, particularly through strengthening local capabilities, developing talent and supporting the ambitions of Saudi Vision 2030,” which aims to diversify the economy through digital transformation and innovation.
Alathari previously spent more than eight years in senior IP roles at Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC), working with BCLP partners Sam Eversman and Marcus Pearl. He also spent four years as a partner at Norton Rose Fulbright in Dubai and Riyadh, heading its Middle East and North Africa IP practice.
Earlier, he worked at Venable in the US for more than 13 years as a patent agent and patent attorney. He is admitted in the District of Columbia and Virginia and before the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
His advisory work spans the technology lifecycle from research and development through to implementation, including innovation governance. He is also a longstanding member of the Gulf Petrochemicals and Chemicals Association’s research and innovation committee, and he founded Ignyte, a community for start-ups in the Gulf region, among other creative, media, mentoring and artistic interests.
Carol Osborne, BCLP’s global corporate partner lead, said: “Zayd brings a distinctive combination of international legal experience and an in-depth understanding of the business, regulatory and commercial landscape across Saudi Arabia and the GCC.”
Other Saudi hires in the past six months include Pillsbury’s recruitment of Amal Alotaibi from the Ministry of Investment as a Riyadh partner in August, and White & Case’s addition of former Latham & Watkins lawyer Abdullah Al-Hoqail as a partner in Riyadh in July.
White & Case in September announced a strategic investment in Saudi AI contract review start-up Clauze.AI, founded by the firm’s former partner Waad Alkurini earlier in the year.
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