Insights

Doha, Qatar - 27 November 2024: Crowell & Moring, one of the leading international firms operating in Qatar, was named “Banking & Finance Team of the Year” at the ninth Qatar Business Law Forum Conference & Awards Ceremony, held at The St. Regis Marsa Arabia Island, The Pearl Qatar. The award recognizes the firm’s leadership in banking and finance, fintech, and supporting innovation in financial services.

Washington –January 11, 2024: Crowell & Moring announced today that Mark Fenoughty, an experienced senior financial executive, has joined the firm as its new Chief Financial Officer. Fenoughty will lead the firm's finance and accounting functions and play a key role in driving the firm’s business priorities.

The QFC has amended Article 25A of the QFC Employment Regulations, which pertains to the application of the Retirement and Pensions law to Qatari employees working in the QFC.

On 17 October 2024, Law No. 12 of 2024 on the Qatarization of Jobs in the Private Sector was published in Qatar’s Official Gazette.

On 1 September 2024, the Qatar Financial Centre Authority (“QFCA”) and the QFC Regulatory Authority (“QFCRA”) enacted the Digital Assets Framework, a comprehensive regulatory framework that governs the creation and tokenization of digital assets in Qatar.  

The start of 2025 has seen the introduction of the new arbitration rules for the Qatar International Center for Conciliation and Arbitration (“QICCA”). The new rules, entitled the ‘Arbitration Rules 2024’, reflect the changing world of dispute resolution, and the rules are nearly double in length to the 2012 rules reflecting the QICCA’s understanding that arbitration is a competitive environment, and that institutional bodies need to adapt to meet the end-users’ needs. The 2024 rules are a considerable improvement, offering new regimes of expedited and emergency procedures, and transparency on third-party funding, making dispute resolution more accessible and user-friendly. We detail some of the more significant changes below.

This panel will provide an update on issues related to current topics in arbitrating international disputes in MENA: