IEL Elite

Overview

Peers acknowledge the quality of work and bench strength of Clyde & Co’s employment law offering, which is led by Robert Hill in London.

The team is spread across offices in Asia-Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, and Latin America. In August 2022, the firm officially opened in Chile, where Christian Alvarado is a key contact for all employment law matters.

The firm is the Qatar representative of the Employment Law Alliance, where partner Emma Higham – who was recognised in the 2022 IEL Women Leaders survey – is a key contact. Sara Khoja (who divides her time between Dubai and Riyadh) and Rebecca Ford (Dubai) are further names of note for the Middle East.

Clyde & Co is also the Singaporean and UK members of L&E Global – for which Thomas Choo and Hill are key contacts, respectively. Another important name in the group is Michael Tooma in Australia.

Specialisms

From advisory through to contentious matters, the department is capable of covering the full spectrum of employment law issues. Notably, it offers particular expertise in highly regulated sectors – such as insurance and aviation.

The team’s strength in contentious matters is reflected in its impressive litigation capacity. Expertise in this area spans a broad range of claims, including breaches of fiduciary duty, whistleblowing, discrimination, restrictive covenants, and employment status.

The group’s global reach allows it to deftly handle instructions that involve multiple jurisdictions. In the past year, this has been evidenced in support with framework guidelines on remote working policies, cross-border redundancy processes, and corporate transactions.

A team led by Khoja acted for Oliver Wyman on its acquisition of the Middle Eastern management consultancy business of Booz Hamilton Allen, with the key target of the purchase being the mid-level and senior employees. Khoja assisted with the issues impacting employees in Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE.

A further example of the group’s strength in acting on strategic corporate matters was the advice led by Ford on the employment law ramifications in Saudi Arabia and the UAE of Danfoss’ acquisition of Eaton Hydraulics.

In addition, the department offers its clients various training, webinars, and forums, on issues impacting the management of international workforces – such as ESG matters, D&I, and mental health.

Experts based in…

Australia, Chile, China, Hong Kong, Kenya, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa, Tanzania, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, and Venezuela.