Full Profile
Will is a Legal Director in the Construction and Projects team in Dubai.
Prior to relocating to the Middle East several years ago, Will trained and qualified with the firm in London. Whilst practicing in the UK, Will acted for developers, contractors, sub-contractors, professional consultants and funders in relation to disputes across a broad spectrum of sectors and project types (including renewable energy and PPP/PFI schemes). He also provided project counsel advice, and completed a secondment to the in-house legal team of a leading UK construction company.
In Dubai, Will primarily acts for government entities and contractor clients in construction disputes in the UAE and neighbouring jurisdictions. These disputes again range across a broad spectrum of sectors and project types (including transport, energy, hospitality and infrastructure).
As a result of the above, he has experience in all forms of alternative dispute resolution including arbitration, adjudication, and mediation as well as court proceedings in the UK and UAE.
Will is also part of the firm's dedicated health & safety practice, and regularly advises clients on their HSE obligations at law. In this role, he regularly speaks on HSE issues and the legal framework governing the same at leading HSE events in the UAE.
Finally, he is the "International Alumni Ambassador" for The University of Law in the UAE; a member of The Society of Construction Law in the Gulf; and a member of the UAE branch of the Lighthouse Club.
Experience
- Advising a UAE public sector client in defending a claim in respect of delay & varied works on a major infrastructure project in Dubai. DIAC arbitration. Dispute value AED3 billion.
- Advising an international contractor in various disputes in Oman for delay and associated costs in relation to a number of major infrastructure projects. Dispute value $25 million.
- Advising a leading international oilfield services provider in respect of a dispute concerning its final account, concerning an offshore wind farm in the UK. Final account value £50 million.
- Advising a leading international contractor on a defect claim (water ingress), concerning a luxury residential development on the Palm Jumeirah in Dubai. DIFC-LCIA arbitration. Dispute value AED75 million.
- Advising a leading GCC contractor in defending a defect claim (cladding) in relation to a commercial development in the DIFC in Dubai. Ad-hoc UNCITRAL arbitration. Dispute value AED60m.
- Advising a leading GCC contractor in pursuing a claim concerning defective cladding before the Dubai Court of First Instance, Court of Appeal and Court of Cassation. Dispute value AED7 million.
- Assisting multiple contractor clients in relation to security / bond calls in the UAE, and the associated attachment actions.
- Advising international and GCC contractors on multiple workplace injuries/fatalities occurring in the UAE, and judicial proceedings before the Public Prosecutor and/or local courts.
- Drafting bespoke contracts and consultancy agreements based on the FIDIC suite of contracts, and ancillary documentation for various contractor and sub-contractor clients.
- Advising a leading GCC developer on the full suite of construction documents for a skyscraper in Dubai worth AED14.6 billion.
- Acting in a project counsel role for clients during the lifetime of a project to assist with dispute management and resolution, and advising on other project-related issues that may arise.
