ILSA Asks with Mr. Mazin Al Mardhi

Can you tell us about your current role and responsibilities at Charles Russell Speechlys, and how you came to work in the construction industry?

I am a Partner in the Construction, Engineering and Projects Team (CEP) based in the Dubai office. My responsibilities include:

a. Business development – growing the profile of the firm in the jurisdictions we operate within which in my case is the GCC region, particularly UAE, Bahrain, KSA and Qatar.

b. Winning new clients and building relationships with existing clients. Each Partner is required to develop a book of clients and expand the areas in which we support those clients who often have diverse business portfolios.

c. Delegating work to other members of the CEP team and supervising the work done by others. This includes working towards developing the skills and knowledge of the firm’s associates, trainees and paralegals. We are also required to ensure that the work is spread evenly across all of our team members and manage each person’s capacity.

d. Administration of the firm including financial management. Partners are required to coordinate on a daily/weekly basis to ensure that our monthly/yearly targets are met and we are constantly working towards achieving those targets.

e. Collaborating with others within the firm to share work and build inter-firm relations.

As a Legal Consultant, what do you consider to be the most important skills for success in this field? How have you developed these skills throughout your career?

There are so many different aspects to the job that require different skill sets. In terms of advising clients, it’s important to start with a deep knowledge of the laws applicable in any particular jurisdiction. I encourage young practitioners to work towards developing a specialist knowledge in at least one industry or business sector whilst maintaining a firm grasp of the general legal framework. The quality of any legal analysis issued by the firm will depend on the depth of one’s knowledge of the law so it’s important to stay on top of developments within the law and policy.

Equally, as consultants we should maintain an in-depth understanding of our client’s business operations including the commercial needs and risks of their business. Often junior lawyers neglect consideration of the clients’ practical business needs when issuing advice which can sometimes result in a disconnect between our legal analysis and the reality of any situation on the ground. As we gain experience dealing with problems faced by clients in their day-to-day, we tend to think of solutions that are practical as opposed to being theoretically sound.

In addition to being strategic thinkers and problem solvers, there are many other skills that are necessary when working within a large international organisation such as CRS. Being part of a firm means that we depend on each other to some extent or other in almost everything we do. For this reason, having the qualities of a team player is key to achieving success in an industry that is very competitive by nature. Leadership, communication and having people skills are important characteristics to have, particularly if one aims to accede to positions of seniority within the organisation.

Can you tell us about your experience completing your Bachelor of Laws at Queen Mary University of London? How did it shape or contribute to your legal career?

Looking back to my time at university, I realise that the most important part of studying law is developing a certain way of thinking as strategic problem solvers. Sitting final exams taught me to work under pressure which is a daily part of the job. Law school also involves a lot of independent study which requires self-discipline - I think this is vital for success in any line of work.

You made the decision to move from Bahrain to London in order to pursue your legal career. Can you talk a bit about the process of making such an important decision and how it has impacted your career path?

I pursued my law degree at Queen Mary’s which remains a top university in London and I highly recommend it for anyone considering studying in the UK. To be honest, I couldn’t wait to complete my degree and start working so as soon as I graduated, I moved back to Bahrain straight into work at my father’s office. The majority of my work comprised of corporate, commercial and litigation work.

In 2015, I made a big decision to move to Dubai to develop my own practice within a firm and market that was totally independent from my father’s practice. Leaving the comfort of home to pursue my own career goals actually motivated me more to succeed but it also came with a lot of self-imposed pressure. I was fortunate to join a thriving law firm with 60 to 70 practicing lawyers many of whom came from different backgrounds. This was a major learning curve as I was able to draw from the knowledge and experience of some of the top legal minds in the UAE. Between 2015 and 2019 I focused on developing my practice within the construction industry, primarily contentious work and arbitration.

In 2019, I joined CRS as a Senior Associate in the Construction Engineering and Projects Team and earlier this year, I was promoted to Partner. Looking back at the career decisions I’ve made to date, I’m grateful to have taken the risks and challenges that came with moving to a new jurisdiction (UAE) and working independently.

As a Partner at Charles Russell Speechlys, what does your daily routine typically look like? How do you balance managing multiple clients and projects?

Each day is different depending on the work streams in play at any given time. If we’re in the middle of a three-day arbitration hearing, the majority of my day will be dedicated to working on that case and I will have to clear my schedule of meetings and other commitments. Managing your time is one of the most important skills as a lawyer and particularly as a partner. Typically, my day will consist of administrative meetings to coordinate work within the CEP team; client meetings which we often conduct virtually which saves a lot of time otherwise spent travelling to and from offices; dealing with lots of emails throughout the day and depending on the active matters I’m working on at any given time, I would spend a few hours each day drafting legal advice or if we have active arbitration cases, drafting pleadings/submissions.

As is the case with most international law firms, we are required to spend a minimum number of hours doing billable work each day (usually 4 to 7 hours). As partners, we are expected to complete at least 1,000 billable hours of work each year. This must be balanced with all the other administrative work and business development initiatives we take on to grow the firm’s network of clients. I often feel that there aren’t enough hours in the day to get everything done so it’s really important to learn to manage your time well in order to avoid burning out. I keep a daily and weekly “to do” list that I prepare at the start or end of each day which I depend on to stay on top of everything.

Can you share a particularly challenging case or project you have worked on in your career, and how you did approach it and ultimately resolve it?

One of the fondest memories of my career stems from a case that I worked on (together with a senior colleague) between 2015 to 2021 which was referred to arbitration in 2019. We acted for a contractor pursuing a range of typical construction claims against a developer and defended against counterclaims in two rounds of adjudication and an ICC arbitration seated in Bahrain before a three-member tribunal. Whilst arbitral proceedings were underway, albeit prior to the constitution of the arbitral tribunal, the firm was forced to initiate ICC Emergency Arbitrator proceedings and was successful in obtaining a favourable interim decision which ultimately aligned with the ICC’s final award.

In addition to a variety of complex construction related issues of a technical nature including quantification of entitlements for delay and disruption, the arbitration covered difficult legal issues relating to contractual interpretation, principles of law, duties under equivalent project relief clauses, the introduction of new evidence that was critical to the case under UNCITRAL Rules and amongst other, proportionality defences in respect of claims for delay damages.

Safe to say that this particular case had greater levels of drama than we typically deal with in similar matters. Two weeks prior to the final hearing, we received information from a whistle blower that effectively flipped the case on its head, requiring a total change in our strategic approach which we had been building up during the previous 18 months. The evidence was critical for our case and we spent the entire first day of the hearing exchanging opening statements discussing the dramatic twist of events that would ultimately prove our case. We faced all sorts of challenges and threats from the opposing side which we managed to overcome during a very heated and lively arbitration hearing which lasted five days.

The ICC issued its’ final award in May 2020 in favour of our client. The award upheld our submissions on key points of the law, interpretation of contract, dismissed all counterclaims entirely and awarded 80% of all costs incurred by my client as well as interest on the judgment debt. This represented a major win for both the firm and the client who we had developed a very close relationship with prior to the case.

The work performed on this matter starting from the negotiation and drafting of the contract for works; to the commencement of two separate adjudication proceedings whilst the project was underway in 2015 and 2017; to the conduct of arbitration before a three member ICC tribunal in 2019; followed by litigation for ratification and enforcement of the arbitral award before national courts in 2021, demonstrates a wide range of services that we can offer as lawyers. I probably learnt more from my experience on that case than I did during all of my years at university.

Can you discuss any specific challenges or opportunities that you see for the in your field in the coming years?

Having overcome the challenges brought by the pandemic, we learnt a lot in terms of how to manage ourselves under very difficult circumstances however as the economies we operate within evolve, we must continuously learn to adapt in changing times. In the construction industry, we are witnessing an era of increasing complexity of construction projects that are benefitting from advancements in technology and design. This means lawyers will need to work hard to maintain an in-depth knowledge of emerging technologies to effectively advise their clients. For those involved in contentious work, staying informed of the latest practices adopted by our clients will be necessary when pursuing or defending against claims that are technical in nature.

Separately, with the rapid advancement of technology, many businesses including law firms are increasingly concerned about cyber security threats, particularly in relation to sensitive project data and intellectual property. As legal advisors, we must be equipped to address such threats and develop strategies to protect our clients’ confidential information. I consider this to be a challenge faced by almost all businesses as we all live in an increasingly digital and connected world.

What advice do you have for law students who are preparing to start their legal careers? What do you think are the most important steps to take in order to succeed in this field?

I would encourage all young lawyers to try to place themselves in working environments that are challenging but also supportive for their personal growth. Young professionals tend to develop confidence quicker if they are strong team players that can learn from each other in a team-like environment. I often spent a lot of my time debating certain issues with colleagues from various backgrounds to try to gain a complete understanding of the same issue from different angles.

In addition to taking the time to study the work performed by accomplished lawyers and sponge as much as possible from your colleagues, I would add that having a mentor or mentor-like figures around you in the early stages of your career is a major advantage which I was very fortunate to have from the very beginning of my career.

I started my career in 2008 in Bahrain at a firm founded and managed by my father who inspired me to pursue a career in law. I later joined Galadari Advocates (a well-known Emirati firm in Dubai) in 2015 before joining CRS in 2019. Throughout this period I was fortunate to have two close mentors who were much more experienced and had already achieved a lot of success in their careers. I owe a lot of my personal development to the close collaboration I had with my mentors so I encourage young lawyers looking for training opportunities or jobs to take some time to consider the people they will be working with. Being amongst knowledgeable legal minds that have the time and patience to work with young lawyers and support their development is far more valuable than any pay cheque.