Commercial

Hadef & Partners is one of the few law firms in the region to maintain a clearly defined and fully dedicated, standalone Commercial Practice. Unlike in many firms, where commercial work is treated as a support function for corporate-led transactions and projects, our specialist commercial lawyers operate independently from our Corporate and M&A colleagues, allowing Hadef & Partners to provide clients with a uniquely expert, commercial legal service supporting all of their business’ operations, trade, and commercial transactions.

Our Commercial lawyers are industry experts who focus entirely on the contracts, regulatory frameworks, and trading arrangements that drive business value; from market entry strategies, to complex cross-border supply chains, and collaboration arrangements. Our core areas of expertise include:

• Commercial Contracting: Structuring and negotiating agency, distribution, franchising, and services agreements.
• Consumer Contracting: Creating consumer contract suites for both online and in-store.
• Data & Digital: Comprehensive advice on data protection, privacy, cybersecurity, and digital transformation.
• Technology & IP: Licensing, technology procurement, and intellectual property commercialisation.
• Strategic Contracting: Managing high-value outsourcing, logistics, and consumer protection matters.

Our advice is grounded in real-world business experience. Many of our lawyers come from industry backgrounds, having held in-house roles within major multinational organisations prior to joining our private practice Commercial team. This operational perspective allows us to act as true sector specialists, understanding the specific regulatory and trading nuances of industries including:

• Retail & Consumer Goods
• Technology, Media & Telecommunications (TMT)
• Healthcare & Life Sciences
• Education
• Hospitality, Leisure & Tourism
• Manufacturing, Logistics & Supply Chain

Where our clients projects encompass a wider range of legal matters, our dedicated Commercial Practice works closely with our separate, specialised Corporate, Employment, Dispute Resolution, Banking & Finance, and Real Estate departments to enable Hadef & Partners to deliver a true, full-service response to our clients' needs.

• Advising a leading education program provider, working with their internal procurement team to provide legal and regulatory advice on a wide range of RFPs and commercial collaboration contracts, explicitly focusing on contracting with UAE government entities.
• Advising a well-known GCC airline regarding its business operations in the UAE, including advising on a wide range of commercial contracts, including contracts for the purchase of goods and services, IT-related contracts, consumer-facing contracts, collaboration agreements, and general day-to-day commercial inquiries.
• Advising a ‘cooling as a service’ provider, drafting a comprehensive suite of documents for their in-house legal team covering their cooling as a service initiative. Working closely with our Licensing and Regulatory team advising on the regulatory aspects of providing a de-centralized cooling service in the Emirates of Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
• Advising a global conglomerate on setting up a centralized service provision for its multi-national group of companies, drafting the related intra-group services agreement, and liaising with our Tax Team to ensure that the tax and transfer pricing elements were addressed.
• Advising a nuclear electric power company on its entry into a services agreement to provide post-transaction support in the form of services and trademark licensing following a spin-off of one of its entities.
• Advising a renewable energy and desalinated water production plant provider regarding a request for statistical information from a UAE government organisation.
• Advising a well-known UAE-based school on its internal and external confidentiality documentation and drafting a suite of non-disclosure documents for various uses.
• Advising a leading hotel brand on entering into a non-disclosure agreement, with a specific focus on the choice of jurisdiction.
• Advising a leading education institution on terminating its after-school activity provider for poor service provision.
• Advising a leading gaming company on the age of consent for entry into commercial relations.