DWF Middle East, a subsdiary of UK law firm DWF, says that it has added corporate partner Kayaan Unwalla head the business’s Corporate and Defence and Security Practice following several other recent appointments at the Dubai office.

According to DWF, Unwalla helps strengthen its Middle East presence and comes with significant Middle East experience. Describing Unwalla as well-respected for his work in the defence, security and aerospace sectors, he has provided legal advisory services to government contractors in relation to highly complex matters involving acquisitions, joint ventures, strategic PPPs, investigations and regulatory compliance.

“This is an important strategic appointment for DWF and further reinforces its commitment to the region. As well as being a highly regarded corporate lawyer, Kayaan is recognised for his skills in drafting laws and policies relating to national and border security and his expertise in defence offset structuring, military logistics, cyber-security and dual-purpose technologies, which complements the business’s existing defence and security credentials. Kayaan has previously served in the Legal Department with the US DoD, UK MoD and NATO prime contractor and worked in London, Afghanistan (LOGCAP IV), Central Asia, Africa and the Middle-East,” said the company in a statement.

DWF Middle East also recently appointed Shiraz Sethi as the business’s Regional Managing Partner, partner James Fox as Head of Dispute Resolution Middle East and partner Umera Ali as Global Head of Islamic Finance and Head of Banking and Finance Middle East. The business now has twelve Partners throughout the Middle East, servicing clients from its Dubai and Doha offices as well as via Riyadh and Jeddah, through its exclusive alliance with Harasani & Alkhamees.

“We are delighted to bring Kayaan on board, as his appointment will not only help bolster our corporate offering to our clients within the region but also further strengthen our defence and security capabilities within the region and globally. Kayaan has a tremendous reputation within the market and we envisage his joining will only further demonstrate DWF’s ambition to attract first-class lawyers to its fold,” said  Shiraz Sethi, Managing Partner of DWF Middle East.

“I am delighted to be a part of the DWF story, which will create new opportunities to expand our practice and service our clients better,” commented Unwalla. “The teams in Dubai have incredible energy and I look forward to growing our corporate, defence and security practices by collaborating closely with my DWF colleagues globally.”