B. Eng. (Cairo), PM Dip. (AUC), LL.B. (Toronto), LL.M. (Cambridge), Ph.D. (Barrington), FCIArb.

The Managing Partner of Shalakany Law Office which was established in 1912 and with over 60 attorneys and fee earners between Cairo and Alexandria is one of the leading law firms in the Middle East. He heads the Litigation and Arbitration Department and Intellectual Property Group. Khaled El Shalakany obtained in 1978 his B.Eng. in electronics and communications engineering, with distinction, from the Faculty of Engineering, at Cairo University. After graduating he joined IBM Egypt as a computer systems engineer. One of the projects he worked on with IBM was the implementation of the first on-line computer banking system in Egypt. In 1981 he was awarded the IBM Systems Engineering Professional Excellence Award. Khaled El Shalakany obtained in 1982 a professional postgraduate diploma in management from the American University in Cairo. In the fall of 1982, he resigned from IBM, and traveled to Canada where he enrolled in the Faculty of Law at the University of Toronto. As a law student, he represented the Faculty in the Jessup International Law Competition. In 1984/1985 he was selected as the Faculty’s Chief Justice of the Moot Court. Khaled El Shalakany obtained his LL.B. in 1985 (as per University of Toronto – this is a post-graduate degree equivalent to the U.S. Juris Doctor), and joined the Law firm of Fasken & Calvin in Toronto as an articling lawyer. He successfully completed the bar admissions course and exams and was called to the Ontario Bar as a Barrister and Solicitor in 1987. He then joined Shalakany Law Office in Cairo as a legal consultant specializing in intellectual property matters, labour law, computer law, construction law, corporate commercial law and international arbitration. He was admitted as a member of the Egyptian Bar Association in 1989. He became a partner of Shalakany Law Office in 1990, and in 1993 he was registered as a patents and trademarks attorney in Egypt. In 1992, after taking a one year sabbatical from his firm, Khaled El Shalakany obtained an LL.M in international law from Cambridge University. As part of his research work, he wrote a thesis on the legal status of Jerusalem under International Law, which was subsequently published by the Egyptian Society of International Law. He was licensed to act as legal advisor in Dubai from 1996 – 2012 and during this period provided legal services to clients in the UAE and the GCC in a number of fields including companies law, construction law, agencies and intellectual property. In the course of his practice in Egypt, Khaled El Shalakany has acted as a legal advisor in late 1980s and early 1990s to the Egyptian Cabinet Information and Decision Support Center on intellectual property law and computer law in particular. In this capacity he wrote a number of research papers and articles on the protection of computer software under copyright law, and assisted in the drafting of proposals for the amendment of regulations under the Egyptian Copyright Law to provide protection for computer software. He has participated as organizer and/or speaker in a number of seminars and conferences on this topic. At the invitation of the US Government, he attended the Copyright Institute organized by the Library of Congress. Khaled El Shalakany, as part of his Firm Construction Practice Group, also participated in the preparation of the Arabic text of the FIDIC Red Book (4th edition) and acted as counsel, expert and arbitrator in a number of arbitrations and court cases relating to construction and other commercial disputes. These included the case concerning the construction of the Ahmed Hamdi Tunnel under the Suez Canal which involved the decennial liability of contractors. As an expert on construction law, he has also participated in a number of seminars and lectures on the FIDIC Red Book. As a senior partner in his Firm, he oversees its Litigation practice which handles on average 800 on-going cases. In 1992 and until 1997 Khaled El Shalakany enrolled at London University (SOAS) as a part-time post graduate research student. Based on his research and experience he obtained in 1999 a Ph.D. from Barrington University (now the University of Atlanta a postsecondary distance educational institution accredited up to March 2013 by the DETC, USA), the subject of his thesis being a comparative analysis of the copyright laws of Egypt, UAE and Saudi Arabia with emphasis on protection of computer software. Part of the research work that culminated in his thesis has been published in articles in the Middle East Commercial Law Review (Sweet & Maxwell-U.K) and other journals. He is of the opinion that his post graduate law degree from the University of Toronto and his degree from Barrington each separately grants him the title of ‘Dr.’ He appreciates that given that the University of Toronto law degree was only titled Juris Doctor as of the year 2000, and given the controversial status of Barrington’s accreditation this view may not be shared by some, and accordingly he is equally happy to be called Eng., Maître and/or Mr. From 1996 – 2012 he was a legal advisor of the Unilever Arabia Group in the Gulf region (handling a variety of legal issues including companies law, corporate/commercial and employment disputes). He is a member of the Association of Egyptian Engineers, the Egyptian Bar Association, the Law Society of Upper Canada, and the International Bar Association. He is registered as an arbitrator with the Cairo Regional Center for International Commercial Arbitration and the Egyptian Ministry of Justice and is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators in London. He has acted as arbitrator, advocate and expert in over 80 international commercial arbitrations. Khaled El Shalakany has been a speaker in a number of international conferences, and has organized and led several workshops on Law Firm Management conducted in conjunction with the law societies in Bahrain, the UAE and Kuwait. He has lectured at the American University in Cairo, the French University in Egypt and Cairo University. Khaled El Shalakany has a number of published works which apart from articles, include the translation into Arabic of Eric Fromm’s ‘The Heart of Man’, the Chapter on Egypt in ‘Legal Aspects of Doing Business in the Middle East’ (Kluwer-Boston), the PLC (Practical Law) Dispute Resolution Multi-Jurisdictional Guide, the PLC (Practical Law) Arbitration MultiJurisdictional Guide and the IBA Arbitration Country Guide (Egypt Chapter). He has also published in English two collections of short stories and photographs (‘20×20’ Trafford Canada 1999 and ‘Cleopatra’s Bath’ Trafford 2016) and a book in Arabic on political science. He is currently working on a translation of Bertrand Russell’s “Wisdom of the West” as well as a book on Law Firm Management. He is also the founder and Editor in Chief of his Firm’s publication THE ADVOCATE. Khaled El Shalakany is one of the founding members of the Egyptian Social Democratic Party. He is a founding member of the Egyptian Society of Information Management and the Egyptian Society for the Protection of Industrial Property. He is the principal founder and Chairman of the Egyptian ADR Association that is pioneering the application in Egypt of mediation for the settlement of business disputes. His other interests include astronomy, history, Egyptology and photography.

A practicing lawyer in Egypt, Emad joined SHALAKANY in 1989 after receiving his LLB from Cairo University. Emad has been consistently recognized as a leading lawyer by the top ranking firms through his work on high-profile joint ventures and Mergers & Acquisitions. Emad specializes in Corporate and Commercial Matters, Construction, and Manufacturing.

Shalakany is proud to announce Emad El Shalakany as Meritas Board Member.

A practicing lawyer in Egypt, Mahmoud joined SHALAKANY in 1983 after receiving his LLB from Ain Shams University. Mahmoud heads the Litigation Department and addresses and resolves disputes before courts, mediation panels, administrative bodies, Ministry of Justice experts, and the State Council. Mahmoud specializes in Commercial litigation, Taxation, and Trade Disputes.

A practicing lawyer in Egypt as well as a qualified member of the New York Bar Association, Sharif joined SHALAKANY in 1994 after receiving his Juris Doctor degree from Boston University in the United States. Sharif has been recognized for his extensive pro bono work, particularly for the Children’s Cancer Hospital Foundation in Cairo. Sharif specializes in Construction Law, Agency, Distribution, and Franchise Agreements, Labor Law, IT and IP, as well as Incorporation of Companies and Corporate Governance.

A practicing lawyer in Egypt, Adel joined SHALAKANY in 1989 after receiving his LLB from Ain Shams University. Having spent a number of years as in-house lawyer to various commercial companies, Adel has acted for banks, insolvency practitioners and most types of commercial clients. Adel is a seasoned commercial litigator with strong credentials, specializing in the fields of Banking, Construction and Commercial Agencies.

A practicing lawyer in Egypt, Mostafa joined SHALAKANY in 1987 after receiving his LLB from Assiut University. Mostafa has an outstanding reputation within Egypt, with wide experience in major litigation and dispute resolution cases, handling complex and substantial disputes and seeking their effective and efficient resolution in whatever way that best serves the interests of clients. Mostafa specializes in Construction and Criminal Litigation.

A practicing lawyer in Egypt as well as a qualified solicitor of England and Wales, Aly joined SHALAKANY from Linklaters LLP in London, whom he joined at the start of his legal career as a trainee solicitor. Aly has been consistently recognized as a leading lawyer by the top ranking firms over the past decade as a result of working on a range of “pathfinder” transactions within the Egyptian jurisdiction. Aly specializes in Finance, Projects and Mergers & Acquisitions.

A practicing lawyer in Egypt as well as a professor at the Civil Law Department- Faculty of Law, Cairo University, Dr. Moataz joined SHALAKANY as a Senior Associate in 2000. Being the head and key member of the Hotels, Tourism, and Real Estate Department at the Office, Dr. Moataz has been consistently recognized as a leading lawyer specialized in the area of development, acquisition, franchising, management and operation of hotels, resorts, spas, golf courses, condos, real estate and residential projects.

A practicing lawyer in Egypt, Laila joined SHALAKANY in 1985 after receiving her LLB from Cairo University. Laila advises on a wide range of commercial matters with experience in resolving contractual disputes. Laila specializes in complex commercial litigation involving derivatives, commercial fraud, asset freezing, contentious insolvency work, schemes of arrangement, examination of directors, professional negligence, shareholders disputes, large-scale group actions and trust litigation.

A practicing lawyer in Egypt, Noha joined SHALAKANY in 1992 after receiving her LLB from Ain Shams University. Noha provides advice on the implications of reorganizations, mergers and consolidations on labour relations, collective bargaining strategies and related litigation, disciplinary and dismissal disputes, alternative dispute resolution procedures, unfair labour practice complaints, employment issues and liabilities arising in sales and purchases of businesses and employment contracts.

A practicing lawyer in Egypt, Osama joined SHALAKANY in 1987 after receiving his LLB from Ain Shams University. Osama has broad experience in litigation of major cases, including mediations trials and appeals before tribunals and first instance courts in addition to handling disputes related to labor relations; collective bargaining strategies and related litigation; disciplinary and dismissal disputes; alternate dispute resolution procedures; unfair labor practice complaints; employment issues and liabilities arising in sales and purchases of businesses and employment contracts.