Eversheds Sutherland has made a double hire in Dubai from King & Spalding to expand its Middle East coverage.
The new recruits are partner Mike Rainey and Asal Saghari, who joins as a partner having been counsel at King & Spalding. Rainey brings two decades of experience in banking and restructuring matters in the Middle East, while Saghari is a financing lawyer spanning both conventional and Shari’ah compliant structures.
Rainey’s practice covers real estate finance, corporate lending and special situations, acting for lenders, borrowers and sponsors. Saghari’s practice has a strong emphasis on private credit both regionally and internationally.
The duo’s arrival takes the number of lateral hires joining Eversheds Sutherland (International) to 27 since the start of this year, a record.
Keith Froud, international chief executive at Eversheds, said: “Our continued investment in exceptional talent of the likes of Mike and Asal is a core part of driving our global strategy. We continue to attract partners of the highest calibre, and this record year for lateral hires across our international business demonstrates both momentum and confidence.”
Rainey joins after more than 21 years at King & Spalding, becoming a partner in 2010 and relocating to Dubai from London in 2015. He previously spent almost three years at legacy firm Tite & Lewis and a year at Dewey & LoBoeuf.
Saghari arrives after 17 years at King & Spalding, becoming counsel upon her move to Dubai in 2018. She started her career at Clifford Chance in London, having completed part of her training in Dubai.
Rainey said the firm’s established Middle East platform provides a strong foundation to grow his banking, finance and restructuring practice, while Saghari said the firm’s regional platform will help to support her existing clients more effectively and build new relationships.
Tawfiq Tabbaa, Middle East managing partner at Eversheds, said: “The appointments of Mike and Asal exemplify our commitment to the expansion of core capabilities in the Middle East. Their established presence in the region, coupled with technical proficiency and trusted relationships across key financial institutions, directly supports our commercial trajectory.
“These appointments not only reinforce the credibility of our corporate finance offering, they position us to capture new market opportunities, whilst continuing to deliver high-value client solutions, but with additional agility and depth.”
Other firms that have been expanding in the Middle East recently include Reed Smith, which earlier this month hired Bird & Bird’s Middle East head Anders Nilsson to strengthen its presence in Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Riyadh. Also this month, Mishcon de Reya opened two new offices in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, with recent recruit Christopher Skipper appointed as managing partner of the firm’s UAE offices.
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