The Legal 500

As one of the largest law firms in Egypt, Al Kamel Law Office has the critical mass to advise on major disputes, as well as being one of the ‘go-to’ firms for arbitration, with Mohamed Kamel cited by clients as a key draw. The ‘highly responsive’ Abul Fadl Hosny is a steady influence as head of the litigation team, providing ‘practical and timely advice’. A busy caseload includes advising Boeing on compensation over an Egyptian Boeing 737 crash, and advising a subsidiary of Northrop Grumman on an arbitration against a subsidiary of the Ministry of Civil Aviation.

Karim Hafez of Hafez has a ‘superlative’ reputation for arbitration, with a number of large, high-value cases across the business spectrum. He sits regularly as an arbitrator, handling cases under major institutional rules including ICC, LCIA and Cairo Regional Centre for International Commercial Arbitration (CRCICA).

The ‘first-class’ litigation team at Helmy, Hamza & Partners (Baker & McKenzie) is spearheaded by two heavyweights: Hazim Rizkana and Mohama Talaat. The team regularly handles large-scale disputes for its impressive corporate client base, including acting for Barclays Bank in a $300m dispute with Egyptian Distribution Group and for Egyptian General Petroleum Company on a dispute with a competitor.

Full-service firm Kosheri, Rashed & Riad has a strong reputation in litigation and arbitration, owing in part to the ‘outstanding’ El-Kosheri, who has been Vice Chairman of the ICC International Court of Arbitration since 1998. The firm handles all types of litigation across the business spectrum.

Shalakany Law Office has an enviable litigation and arbitration practice staffed by ‘excellent’ practitioners, whom clients describe as ‘thorough and original, with immense clarity, despite dealing with highly complex issues’. Managing partner Khaled El Shalakany is a ‘consummate professional’ who deals with international disputes with ‘extreme ease’.

Nabil Elaraby heads the arbitration and litigation practice Zaki Hashem & Partners, Attorneys at Law, which is a ‘reliable’ choice of instruction on contentious disputes. The team garners work from its impressive client list of government bodies, construction, IT and telecoms and petrochemical companies.

Hassouna & Abou Ali offers ‘sound’ litigation and arbitration expertise to its international and domestic client base, which includes household names Dow Chemical Company, Johnson & Johnson and Coca-Cola. Name partners Ahmed Abou Ali and Mohammed Hassouna are both admitted before the Supreme Court of Egypt and can draw on four associates for assistance.

Ibrachy & Dermarkar remains a popular instruction, in 2010 acting as Egyptian council for an international law firm on a major £2bn dispute in the telecommunication sector. On the arbitration side, the firm successfully obtained an award in favour of a hotel management company which filed a £2m case against a hotel and resort company in Egypt. Bahieldin Elibrachy and Hegazy El Wakeel are the key contacts.

For clients looking to bring cases in more than one jurisdiction, SNR Denton is an attractive proposition, with offices throughout the Middle East. Its ‘seasoned’ staff includes Michael Lacey and Amal Afifi, who heads Afifi Law Office, which works in association with the Cairo office on local law matters. The team is advising RBS/Natwest Bank on sharia law proceedings in Egypt.

DLA Matouk Bassiouny has a busy litigation and arbitration practice spearheaded by former Ibrachy & Dermarkar partner Osman Mowafi. Standout matters in 2010 included successfully defending Mitsubishi Motors Corporation in primary court proceedings concerning a highly publicised claim for $950m, and successfully defending Orascom Telecoms Holdings in another topical dispute with France Telecom.

The ‘esteemed and well-regarded’ Karim Adel Kamel of Karim Adel Law Office advised a slew of clients in the Egyptian courts in 2010, covering the gamut of employment, civil, bad debt collection and other claims. A notable arbitration was successfully advising management company Savita Resorts and Spa in a claim against the owning company.

The disputes team at Marghany Advocates had a busy year; highlights included achieving a significant settlement for a major Egyptian pharmaceutical distribution company in multi-jurisdictional dispute with one of its former principals in the EU. Amir Marghany is ‘superb’ and has ‘the confidence of clients’.

The ‘eminent’ Ashraf Nadoury is the bedrock of Nadoury & Nahas Law Offices’ excellent reputation for litigation and arbitration. The 20-lawyer team has an exceptional client list of well-known multinationals and domestic heavyweights across various industries.

Nassar Law has a strong dispute resolution practice which handles both litigation and arbitration as all levels of the Egyptian court system and under a comprehensive range of arbitral rules, such as ICC, LCIA and UNICITRAL. Nagla Nassar is recommended both as an arbitrator and counsel.

Mohamed Nour is the key practitioner at Trowers & Hamlins in association with Nour Law Office for disputes before the Egyptian courts, although the team can also draw on litigation expertise in the London and Dubai offices. The firm is acting for the insurers of Flash Airlines over claims arising out of the loss of a Flash aircraft, and is also advising Rina, the Italian insurance classification society, on claims arising out of the loss of the Al Salam ferry which resulted in the deaths of over 1,000 people.