Charles Russell Speechlys hires Philip O’Riordan in Dubai
Charles Russell Speechlys has appointed Philip O’Riordan as partner and head of its corporate practice in the Middle East, with the lawyer based in the firm’s Dubai office.
O’Riordan joins from Clyde & Co, where he spent 20 years as partner and previously headed the firm’s Middle East corporate practice.
His practice covers cross-border M&A, joint ventures, strategic investments and corporate structuring across the Middle East, with experience acting as lead adviser on transactions in the region. His sector focus spans real estate and hospitality, food and beverage, industrials and manufacturing, infrastructure and healthcare, including corporate real estate work advising developers, sovereign-related entities and investors on development joint ventures, strategic investments and real estate M&A.
Team Move
O’Riordan is joined by legal director Afraz Hussain, who also moves from Clyde & Co in Dubai. Dual-qualified in England and Wales and India, Hussain advises on cross-border M&A, joint ventures, private equity and other corporate transactions. He is regularly instructed on deals along the India-GCC corridor, acting for Indian corporates and investors entering the Gulf and for regional clients investing into India.
Wider Hiring Activity
The appointment follows a series of lateral partner hires at the firm this year, including corporate partners James Paterson and Nadim Meer in London, litigation and dispute resolution partner Luca Beffa and tax partner Frédéric Ney in Geneva, and real estate partner Chiara del Frate in London. The firm also added Marguerite Brac de La Perrière as its first IT, data and AI Partner in Paris and Paolo Rampulla as its first corporate tax partner in Milan.
In Asia, the firm recently appointed Kevin Lee as head of private client, together with his team including partner Wei Kang.
