Having recently returned from Dubai I thought it might be helpful to provide those of you with an interest in the region – perhaps you live and work there or perhaps you are considering relocating to the Middle East – with an overview of what is happening in the legal market from a recruitment perspective.

The overall picture is positive and more so than hitherto. Clients both in private practice and in-house can see signs of recovery, not least in construction  – visible signs of which you can witness as you travel around Dubai and EXPO 2020 has provided an added boost. Consequently, client sentiment is improving and there is renewed appetite to recruit. A number of international law firms are looking to grow in areas such as Corporate M&A, Real Estate and Insurance. Corporate clients are also looking to develop their in-house legal capability and to rely less, therefore, upon external counsel, certainly for the more routine work.

From the point of view of a lawyer wishing to work in Dubai or the wider Middle East then the year ahead looks promising. That’s not to say, however,  that there are no potential pitfalls. It’s early days yet in Dubai and there is a sense in which we have yet to see who the “winners and losers” are as the economic outlook improves. Abu Dhabi has a much smaller, Government-led market for legal services and is perhaps more conservative in approach. Doha is currently in the news of course with regards to the FIFA  World Cup bid the outcome of which will have a material impact on the nature of legal services there. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia seems to press on regardless and offers numerous opportunities.

So the picture is a little mix albeit more promising and firm’s are certainly “open for business”.

If you’d like to know more about the Middle East legal recruitment market and/or wish to find out about our latest vacancies in the region then please do contact us.

In addition to our recent comments about recruitment activity in East Anglia, we thought it might be helpful to shine the spotlight on the City of Cambridge and, in particular, the Real Estate sector. We have previously noted the increased demand for Real Estate lawyers at all levels and the dearth of candidates across East Anglia.

More specifically, we are seeing demand for Real Estate lawyers with specific experience in Development, Planning, Regeneration and Corporate Real Estate. So whether you are based in the East Anglian region, the City and/or looking to relocate from another part of the country to Cambridge we would be very interested in hearing from lawyers with experience in these areas. Current vacancies include:

Regeneration:                   Newly Qualified

Development:                   3-6PQE

Planning:                             3PQE

Planning:                             Newly Qualified

Corporate Real Estate:   2-4PQE

In addition, we would also be interested in LLB/Law School Graduates interested in opportunities as paralegals in areas such as Planning and Conveyancing. These opportunities would particularly suit anyone looking to get a foot on the ladder in to the legal profession longer term.

For details of these and other legal vacancies in Cambridge please contact Michael Pickup at Oyster Search & Selection.

As the demand for both lawyers and business service professionals continues to improve I thought it might be helpful to share our latest vacancies with you as follows:

Partners

Commercial Property (Bedfordshire)

Investment Funds

Commercial Litigation

Corporate M&A/Private Equity

Technology

Associates

Construction Litigation, Senior Associate (UAE)

Funds, Senior Associate

Commercial Litigation/Insolvency 5PQE+

US Securities 5PQE (Singapore)

Commercial Property 5PQE+ (Cambridge)

Corporate Energy/Oil & Gas 4-5PQE+

Corporate M&A/ECM 4-8PQE

Real Estate 2-4PQE (Cambridge)

Corporate Tax 1-3PQE

Leveraged Finance 1-3PQE (US Law Firm)

Derivatives Lawyer 2-3 PQE (Hong Kong)

Real Estate, Planning 2PQE (Cambridge)

Newly Qualified 0r 1PQE Corporate (Dubai)

Newly Qualified 0r 1PQE Insurance/Reinsurance (UAE)

Business Services

Head of Communications

HR Manager – Trainee Development

Head of Recruitment

HR Business Partner x 2

Office Manager (Cambridge/London)

With the market continuing to improve we would also be interested in hearing from you if you are thinking of making a move in 2014 and/or simply wish to get a better understanding of the market more generally. Either way, we would be delighted to hear from you. Please contact Michael Pickup in the first instance.

Recruitment activity amongst law firms in East Anglia is picking up in line with the broader uptick  in economic growth across the region and nationally. Particularly noticeable is the increase in demand for Real Estate lawyers, especially commercial property lawyers. We currently have vacancies right across the spectrum from newly qualified lawyers through to commercial property partners. Indeed, such is the demand in the region that a number of firms are already reporting a dearth of candidates in Real Estate, particularly mid-level lawyers.

Perhaps not surprisingly the demand for Construction lawyers is also picking up, as well as in other practice areas such as Corporate and Agriculture. And Shipping lawyers are always of interest to us. One area that will be interesting to keep an eye on in the year ahead, given the region’s interest in the Energy sector, will be the demand for lawyers with Oil & Gas, Renewable Energy and Infrastructure Project experience.

More generally, we are always happy to hear from lawyers looking to relocate to East Anglia, so if you are thinking of moving this way then please do contact us. We’d be delighted to advise you.

In line with previous comments about the upturn in recruitment activity here in the UK, the evidence suggests that hiring amongst law firms in the Middle East is also picking up, notably in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE. Demand is across a range of practice areas, particularly in Corporate M&A/ECM, Commercial such as Employment and Construction, Insurance/Reinsurance and Banking/Finance. We are also seeing the recruitment of in-house lawyers in sectors such as Technology and in functional areas such as Human Resources.

Whilst clients increasingly prefer to recruit lawyers with regional experience (for obvious reasons) and are often keen to attract lawyers with bi-lingual Arabic and English language skills, opportunities continue to exist for common law qualified lawyers in the UK and elsewhere such as Australia and New Zealand. US qualified lawyers are also in demand.

As recruitment activity continues to pick up in the Middle East then we would be delighted to discuss the potential opportunities available to you, whether you are currently based in the region or considering relocating there from another overseas jurisdiction.

For further information please contact Michael Pickup at Oyster.