BrazilExperienced lawyer Chris Sioufi leads EY Law in the Middle East
Big Four firm EY has appointed a new leader of its law practice in the Middle East and North Africa: Chris Sioufi.
With more than 3,500 legal professionals and 2,400 lawyers operating from 90+ countries worldwide, EY Law (including subsidiary HVG Law) is one of the larger law practices in the world.
In the Middle East, EY Law first launched in 2019, and has since grown to a team of 12 professionals. Now installed at the helm of the unit is Chris Sioufi, who joins from law firm Dechert here he served as Partner and Regional Co-Managing Partner of the firm’s Middle East practice.
Sioufi is a corporate and finance lawyer with over 25 years of experience. He focuses on a large range of corporate transactions, including mergers & acquisitions, private equity, leveraged acquisitions, collective investment schemes, structured finance and Islamic finance matters, and has advised both public and private clients.
Prior to serving Dechert (a US headquartered law firm), Sioufi was a partner at two other international law firms and a Canadian law firm, and before that, he worked as the general counsel and chief compliance officer at an Islamic investment bank in Bahrain.
Dubai-based Sioufi has during his career received multiple recognitions for his work, including being included in the Global 2022 by Chambers.
“I am thrilled to be joining EY and leading its law practice across the MENA region. I look forward to supporting the growth of the service into a regional powerhouse across key jurisdictions, working closely with the EY Law global offering for clients from around the world.”
EY Law operates as a multi-disciplinary practice. The division delivers standalone work to legal counsels of corporates, and works in conjunction with EY teams on engagements that require legal expertise, such as corporate advisory, transaction services, or restructuring.
For Sioufi, this integrated offer was one of the key factors that motivated his move. “The wide range of transformative solutions and ability of EY to work across business lines will ensure that we are providing clients with collaborative and innovative strategies that provide long-term value.”
Ahmed Al-Esry, EY’s MENA Tax Leader added, “We are seeing organisations shift their business models to include more integrated strategies between internal functions, enabling a seamless approach to doing business. EY offering a multifaceted regional law solution provides clients with a cost-effective one-stop shop that will support them in reducing the gap between business advisors and legal counsel.”
Elsewhere in the Big Four legal space, PwC has a larger team than EY in the region, while Deloitte and KPMG have yet to open their legal divisions in the region.
