Defined
by results.

Carrying 230 years of legal and geopolicy heritage not to look backward, but to provide you with a depth of foresight that simply cannot be replicated.
SOHAIR SABER
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01
Services

We specialize in high-stakes litigation where business continuity is on the line. Our practice focuses on winning claims, reversing adverse judgments, and protecting corporate assets against significant liability.

We manage the full lifecycle of an arbitration. Our team is expert in navigating arbitration proceedings and enforcement strategy in challenging jurisdictions.

We architect mission-critical agreements, from cross-border joint ventures to complex technology licensing. We ensure your commercial objectives are secured.

We bridge the gap between compliance and political reality. Our team provides strategic counsel on legislative monitoring, sanctions protocols, and government relations to ensure stability in volatile markets.

02
Specialties

Where we excel

Emerging Technology Litigation

Digital Asset Claims

We litigate complex claims regarding platform failures, fraud, and liability. Our practice extends to enforcement actions involving control of wallets and misleading whitepapers.

Regulatory & Strategic Advice

Space and Defense

We advise space and defense corporations on launches, export controls, and regulatory compliance. We ensure alignment between operational objectives and government policy.

Tax Controversy & Litigation

Tax Disputes (UAE)

We have a special practice dedicated to tax controversy at our United Arab Emirates office where we have litigated over 300 tax dispute procedures in matters collectively over USD 500 million.

Mitigating Disputes & Uncertainty

Legal Risk Management

Our team tailors a proactive risk strategy that wards off potential disputes. We analyze your target operations, contracts, and policies to identify vulnerabilities and turn them into strengths.

03
Emergencies

Immediate intervention

Cross-Border Enforcement

We execute rapid recovery protocols against non-compliant debtors and implement immediate protective measures to defend client assets from aggressive seizure orders.

Tax Audit Response

We intervene immediately upon receipt of tax audit notifications or penalty assessments to suspend liability and shift the burden of proof away from the taxpayer.

Crypto Fraud Protection

We deploy emergency forensic tracing and cross-border injunctions to freeze dissipated assets and recover control of compromised digital wallets before funds are lost.

EOT Construction Claims

We substantiate critical path delays to secure immediate extensions of time (EOT), preventing the imposition of liquidated damages on distressed infrastructure projects.

04
About Us

Who we are

Lawyers and Consultants

Tier-1 Services

Since 1799

We are not a collection of isolated departments; we are a single lineage of lawyers and geopolicy consultants that have operated at the intersection of commerce and sovereignty for 230 years. Our firm’s DNA was forged in 1799 on the ramparts of Acre, where our predecessor Jason (Yassin) Abuwasel stood as Soldier-Jurist and Dragoman, mediating between empires to repel a siege during the Napoleonic Wars. From the trade courts of the 19th-century Levant to the corridors of Washington D.C., Melbourne, Toronto, and Abu Dhabi today, our firm has evolved by mastering the development of economies.

We serve as counsel, instructing counsel, or co-counsel before the UAE Courts (on-shore and off-shore), NY Courts, English Courts, PRC Courts, Qatar Courts, Dutch Courts, and others. We represent parties in high-value proceedings under all major rules, including ICC, LCIA, LMAA, HKIAC, DIAC, QICCA, UNCITRAL, and ICSID. Our professionals serve as expert witnesses on foreign law before the NY, London, and Swiss Courts, and consult governments on legislative modernization and high-value strategic initiatives.
 
Our consultants navigate the frontiers of statecraft and innovation, guiding sovereigns through sensitive geopolicy, fiscal reform, and the emerging space economy. We architect resilient frameworks for digital assets and government regulation, transforming complex global challenges into enduring legacies for private wealth and public institutions.

Leadership

The partners leading the firm.

Our principals drive the vision, supported by an agile network of legal and consulting experts ready to mobilize across borders.

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Sohair Saber

Partner - Policy

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Mahmoud Abuwasel

Partner - Disputes

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Abdulla Abuwasel

Partner - Transactions

05
At a glance

Numbers speak

We let our track record do the talking.

Global Offices
Value of Mandates
USD B+
Recognitions and Awards
+
06
Intelligence

From our experts

Ex NF v Munneke: A Supreme Court of South Australia Analysis of Private Keys
Toronto

Enforcing Arbitral Awards After the Abolition of the DIFC-LCIA: The Ontario Court of Appeal’s Pragmatic Approach

The abrupt abolition of the Dubai International Financial Centre Arbitration Institute (the DIFC-LCIA Arbitration Centre) by the government of Dubai in September 2021 left the international dispute resolution community with a pressing dilemma. With the enactment of “Decree 34,” the rights and obligations of the DIFC-LCIA were transferred to the

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Melbourne

A Reading of the High Court of Australia Transcript on the Nature of Cryptocurrency in Poulton v Conrad: Judicial Considerations of Whether a Bitcoin Holding Can Be Possessed and Protected by the Torts of Conversion and Detinue

A Reading of the High Court of Australia Transcript on the Nature of Cryptocurrency in Poulton v Conrad: Judicial Considerations of Whether a Bitcoin Holding Can Be Possessed and Protected by the Torts of Conversion and Detinue In August 2026, the High Court of Australia heard oral arguments in Poulton

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War Series

War Series: The Multipolar Sanctions Minefield – China’s Supreme Court Outlaws “Overcompliance” with U.S. Sanctions

The Headline Event: Overcompliance is Now a Direct Liability In a landmark directive with immediate, severe implications for global supply chains and cross-border finance, China’s Supreme People’s Court (SPC) has formally utilized its 2021 Anti-Foreign Sanctions Law (AFSL). By elevating a recent Shanghai Maritime Court ruling into its official case

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UAE judgments and tax committee decisions on FTA reconsideration procedures
Abu Dhabi

Data Center Warfare and the Evidentiary Threshold for Financial Force Majeure – Applying the 2026 Dubai Cassation Court’s Banking Disruption Precedent to the Iran War

Introduction: Data Center Warfare, AI Targeting, and the Cross-Border Liquidity Squeeze The 2026 Iran War, initiated by joint U.S.-Israeli airstrikes under Operation Epic Fury on February 28, 2026, has fundamentally altered the risk profile of commercial operations across the Middle East. Beyond traditional geopolitical and economic risks, the current conflict

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Is the UAE having a Geopolitical Golden Goose Moment?
Abu Dhabi

After Almost Three Decades of Strictly Upholding “Back-to-Back” Clauses, the Abu Dhabi Court of Cassation Provides a Reprieve

For nearly thirty years, the “back-to-back” or “pay-when-paid” clause has been a standard method for allocating risk in UAE construction contracts. Historically, UAE courts have upheld these provisions as binding conditional obligations, protecting main contractors but often leaving subcontractors with limited legal options during upstream insolvency. However, a recent ruling

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Melbourne

Arbitrability, Corporate Insolvency, and Fractured Disputes: The NSW Court of Appeal’s Approach in Clough v Elecnor and the Lex Domicilii vs. Lex Arbitri Divide

Introduction: The Collision of Party Autonomy and Public Policy The intersection of international commercial arbitration and corporate insolvency consistently generates profound jurisdictional friction. While arbitration is a private, consensual mechanism governed by party autonomy, corporate insolvency is a collective, statutory procedure rooted in public policy and designed to bind third

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War Series: When Does Port Congestion Become ‘Restraint of Princes'? Lessons from Sanko Steamship v. Navios 1982 Arbitration
Toronto

Piercing the Blockchain Veil: The Ontario Court’s Novel Pushback on Crypto Norwich Orders (Compared with the UK and DIFC)

Introduction: The Maturation of Crypto Asset Recovery As digital asset markets expand, global courts are increasingly tasked with untangling complex, cross-border cryptocurrency disputes. When tokens are misappropriated, the immediate legal reflex for claimants is to pierce the pseudonymity of the blockchain. Universally, litigators have turned to the Norwich Pharmacal order

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War Series

War Series: Reinsurance Profiteering, Hidden Broker Commissions, and Cross-Border Accountability – Applying the Dubai Cassation Court’s 2026 Yemen Precedent to GCC-UK-US Markets in the Iran War

Introduction: The Fog of War and the Opacity of War-Risk Pricing As the 2026 Iran War escalates, severely disrupting supply chains, energy infrastructure, and regional stability across the Middle East, the demand for Political Violence (PV), Terrorism, and War-Risk insurance has surged to unprecedented levels. Regional primary insurers and corporate

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