Courses

Course Overview

As the United Arab Emirates continues to align its regulatory landscape with global standards, understanding the tax implications of Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A) has become a critical necessity for legal and financial professionals. This course, part of the Dubai Government Legal Affairs Department’s Continual Legal Professional Development (CLPD) Programme, offers a comprehensive deep dive into the UAE Corporate Tax (CIT) Law as it pertains to complex corporate transactions. Participants will gain the expertise needed to navigate the evolving tax environment, ensuring excellence and compliance within the Emirate’s legal industry.

What You Will Learn

The curriculum examines the fundamental tax issues inherent in M&A, including historical liabilities, choice of acquisition vehicles, and the critical distinction between asset and share deals. Students will master the “No Gain or Loss” provisions under the UAE CIT Law, specifically focusing on:

* Qualifying Group Relief: Understanding the 75% ownership requirements and the mechanics of tax-neutral intra-group transfers.

* Business Restructuring Relief (BRR): Analyzing share-for-share exchanges, de-mergers, and the strict conditions required to maintain tax neutrality.

* Participation Exemptions: Exploring how to achieve tax-exempt dividends and capital gains through qualifying shareholdings.

Key Focus Areas

* Risk Mitigation: Master the art of Tax Due Diligence to identify historical exposures and optimize transaction outcomes through warranties and indemnities.

* Tax Optimization: Learn to navigate the Specific Interest Deduction Rule and utilize Tax Loss Relief, including the transfer of unutilized losses between group entities.

* Compliance & Clawbacks: Understand the two-year “freezing period” and the circumstances that trigger tax liability at market value.

Course Overview

In an era of increasing global financial scrutiny, understanding the complexities of Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Combating the Financing of Terrorism (CFT) is essential for compliance professionals. This comprehensive course provides an in-depth exploration of the United Arab Emirates’ (UAE) evolving AML architecture, offering participants the tools to navigate the nation’s strategic reforms and its journey regarding the FATF Grey List.

What You Will Learn

Participants will begin by analyzing the fundamental stages of money laundering—placement, layering, and integration—and the specific predicate crimes that drive illicit financial activity, such as narcotics trafficking, fraud, and virtual asset offenses. The curriculum provides a detailed examination of the legal hierarchy, specifically focusing on the landmark Federal Decree-Law No. 10 of 2025, which replaces previous legislation to introduce stricter penalties and expanded oversight.

The course dives deep into the institutional framework, covering the roles of the National AML/CFT Committee (NAMLCFTC), the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), and the Executive Office for Control and Non-Proliferation (EOCN). Students will also compare the unique supervisory landscapes of the UAE’s financial free zones, such as the DIFC and ADGM, against mainland regulations.

Key Focus Areas

Risk-Based Approach: Evaluating customer, product, channel, and geographic risks.

Compliance Obligations: Master the requirements for Customer Due Diligence (CDD), Ultimate Beneficial Ownership (UBO) filing, and mandatory record-keeping.

Suspicious Activity Reporting: Learn the technical nuances of filing STRs and SARs via the goAML platform.

Targeted Financial Sanctions: Understand the four-step framework—Register, Screen, Implement, and Report—to ensure compliance with UAE Local and UNSC lists.

This course provides a comprehensive and up-to-date analysis of construction law in the United Arab Emirates, with a strong emphasis on recent judicial decisions and legislative developments shaping the construction industry. It is designed for lawyers, in-house counsel, engineers, project managers, consultants, developers, and dispute resolution professionals involved in construction and infrastructure projects in the UAE.

The course begins with an overview of the governing legal framework applicable to construction contracts in the UAE, including the UAE Civil Code, the Commercial Transactions Law, and the regulatory regimes applicable in free zones such as the DIFC and ADGM. Participants will examine commonly used standard forms of contract, particularly the FIDIC suite, and understand how UAE courts interpret and apply their provisions in practice.

A core focus of the course is the rights, obligations, and liabilities of key project participants, including employers, contractors, subcontractors, consultants, and lenders. The program explores issues such as scope of works, payment mechanisms, variations, delays, extensions of time, termination, defects liability, bonds and guarantees, and decennial liability. Particular attention is given to liquidated damages, concurrent delay, force majeure, unforeseen circumstances, and limitation periods, as interpreted by recent Court of Cassation rulings.

The course also addresses dispute resolution in construction projects, covering litigation before onshore courts, arbitration in the UAE, consolidation of multi-party disputes, enforceability of arbitration clauses, and the growing judicial scrutiny of unilateral and multi-tiered dispute resolution clauses.

In addition, the program highlights major regulatory developments, including Dubai Law No. 7 of 2025 regulating contracting activities, its licensing, classification, and compliance requirements, and the legal consequences of non-compliance.

Through case studies and judicial precedents, this course equips participants with practical insights to manage risk, draft robust contracts, and effectively navigate construction disputes in the UAE.

This course provides a comprehensive and practical study of the legal status of foreigners in the United Arab Emirates under Federal Law by Decree No. (29) of 2021 concerning the Entry and Residence of Foreigners and its Executive Regulations issued by Cabinet Resolution No. (65) of 2022, as amended. It is designed for legal practitioners, compliance officers, government professionals, HR managers, immigration consultants, and postgraduate law students seeking a detailed understanding of UAE immigration law.

The course examines the legal framework governing foreigners’ entry, residence, and exit from the UAE, beginning with the statutory definition of a foreigner and the fundamental principles regulating immigration control. Participants will explore entry requirements, approved ports of entry, grounds for refusal of entry, and the legal obligations imposed on foreigners, sponsors, employers, and transport operators.

A substantial part of the course is devoted to the classification and regulation of entry visas, including visit visas, work visas, temporary and emergency visas, visas for study, medical treatment, job exploration, and special categories such as seafarers and aircraft crew members. The course then addresses residence visas, distinguishing between work and non-work residence, and provides a detailed analysis of the Green Visa and Golden Visa schemes, their eligibility criteria, benefits, and legal implications.

The program further covers sponsorship rules, family residence, property-based residence, retirement and virtual work visas, and the legal consequences of overstaying or violating immigration requirements. Enforcement mechanisms, administrative fines, inspections, expulsion orders, and judicial and administrative deportation are analysed in detail.

Through practical case studies, the course highlights real-life legal issues involving visa transitions, investment-based residence, family sponsorship, and deportation, enabling participants to apply the law to complex factual scenarios within the UAE context.

This course provides an in-depth and practice-oriented examination of litigation and arbitration in aviation law, with a particular focus on international conventions and the legal framework applicable in the United Arab Emirates. It is designed for legal practitioners, arbitrators, airline legal advisors, regulators, and postgraduate law students seeking advanced knowledge of aviation disputes.

The course begins by addressing judicial litigation arising from air carriage, including claims for compensation related to passenger injury or death, damage to baggage and cargo, and delays in air transport. It offers a detailed analysis of the legal basis of air carrier liability under the Warsaw Convention of 1929 and the Montreal Convention of 1999, highlighting the shift from fault-based liability to objective liability and risk allocation. Special attention is given to evidentiary burdens, limitation of liability, exemptions, and defenses available to air carriers.

The program further examines compensation rules and air carrier liability under UAE Federal Law No. 18 of 1993 (as amended), clarifying the interaction between domestic legislation and international aviation conventions. Participants will gain practical insight into jurisdictional rules, limitation periods, notification requirements, and enforcement of judgments in air transport disputes.

A substantial part of the course is devoted to unfair competition in the air transport sector, covering its procedural scope, legal conditions, evidentiary requirements, and civil and criminal remedies.

Finally, the course explores international air arbitration, including its procedural and substantive scope, the role of ICAO conventions, the selection of arbitral seats, applicable law, and the relationship between arbitration and national courts. The course concludes with a comparative overview of judicial control over arbitral awards, particularly in the UAE and Egypt.

Generative AI is transforming the legal industry—and beyond. This interactive training session will introduce lawyers to broad-based GenAI platforms, with a special focus on Microsoft Copilot. Participants will gain practical skills in prompt engineering, agent building, and explore innovative use cases that extend beyond traditional legal tasks.

By the end of this session, participants will:

Understand the fundamentals of Generative AI and its role in legal practice.
Learn how Microsoft Copilot integrates into workflows to boost productivity.
Develop effective prompting techniques for accurate and efficient AI outputs.
Gain hands-on experience in building custom AI agents for legal and business tasks.
Explore transformative use cases for GenAI—both legal-specific and cross-functional.

Building on the highly rated Common Law Contract Principles courses delivered in 2024 and 2025, this advanced session brings you up to speed with the latest developments shaping contract law.

Join us for an interactive, practical workshop where we explore key trends and judicial decisions from 2025, including:

Contract Interpretation – evolving approaches in the courts
Implication of Terms – when and how terms are read into agreements
Good Faith Obligations – the growing role in commercial relationships
Penalty Clauses – recent rulings and their impact on drafting

Through real case analysis and hands-on exercises, you’ll learn how to adapt and amend common contract clauses to reflect these trends and mitigate risk.

Course Aims and Objectives

This course will examine how the DIFC and ADGM Courts interact with arbitration at every

stage of the process – before the tribunal is constituted, during the proceedings, and after an

award is issued. Using the UNCITRAL Model Law as a benchmark, it will analyze when and

how parties can seek court assistance (for stays of court proceedings, interim measures, tribunal

appointments, evidence-taking, jurisdictional challenges and arbitrator challenges), as well as the

post-award toolbox (recognition and enforcement, set-aside applications, and related

confidentiality issues).

Throughout, the course adopts a comparative, practice-oriented approach to the DIFC and

ADGM frameworks, equipping participants with concrete strategies for using these common law

courts to support and protect arbitration seated in those jurisdictions, in the UAE, or abroad.

Course Aims and Objectives

Course Details: Data Protection and Privacy – Navigating Data Protection Compliance

for Businesses in the UAE

In an era of increasingly stringent global and local data protection and privacy regulations,

particularly within the UAE, understanding and implementing compliant practices is

paramount for all businesses. This comprehensive course is designed to provide a thorough

overview of data protection principles and their practical application across various business

operations.

Throughout this course, we will delve into the key legal requirements for handling personal

data, from its collection and processing to storage and deletion, with a strong emphasis on

relevant UAE laws and international best practices. We will explore data protection

considerations across diverse business functions, including but not limited to:

 Employment and Recruitment: Examining the specific legal requirements for handling

personal data of employees and job applicants throughout the entire employment lifecycle,

from recruitment and onboarding to ongoing employment and termination, and identifying

potential data protection risks at each stage. This will also include on the misconceptions

that’s there so far as data protection protocols are concerned and the best legal implications.

The Course aims to incorporate the following verticals:

 The course will incorporate case studies and practical scenarios illustrating common data

protection challenges faced by businesses in the UAE. Participants will explore effective

strategies for mitigating risks, responding to data breaches, and establishing robust data

governance frameworks.

 The course would also discuss relevant cases and application of local laws including UAE

penal code, labour laws, constitutional laws, personal data protection laws and all other

relevant legal implications.

 We will cover the drafting of essential data protection documents, such as comprehensive

privacy notices, data processing agreements, and consent forms, and the requirements for

ensuring their legal validity and effectiveness across different business contexts.

 Participants are actively encouraged to ask questions and share their own experiences.

Interactive exercises will focus on real-world scenarios involving data protection incidents

within various business contexts, prompting participants to propose compliant and effective

resolution strategies.

Outline:

Method of Presentation:

The course material will be presented through a presentation.

Method of Assessment

To ensure that the course content is followed by the participants, multiple-choice queries,

propositions, and discussions will be used throughout the course. Additionally, participants are

encouraged to contribute their personal experiences. Feedback forms shall be used to evaluate the

course quality at the end of each session.

Course Topic: “Navigating Modern Construction Disputes in the UAE: Understanding the

legal framework and recent trends in UAE courts.”

Course Objectives:

This session provides a clear overview of the key legal principles that shape construction disputes

in the UAE, including those arising under contracts with both public and private entities. It will

address common issues such as variations, delays, cost increases, penalties, and force-majeure

events, explaining how UAE law and standard contract frameworks approach these matters. The

briefing also highlights current trends influencing disputes, such as changing risk allocation and

recent developments in arbitration and enforcement, and how courts and tribunals usually assess

evidence and claims. Drawing on recent case experience, the session offers practical guidance to

help parties manage their contracts effectively and resolve disputes with greater confidence.