Corporate & Commercial
Al Alawi & Co team advises both domestic and international clients on high-profile transactions including acquisitions, privatizations, sales and purchases, joint ventures and strategic investment across various sectors and provides unique expertise in a wide range of corporate governance matters. A combination of legal expertise and profound understanding of industry-specific challenges ensures seamless and timely execution of each and every transaction, regardless of its complexity.
By combining our signature multidisciplinary approach that brings together lawyers and professionals from various areas, we guarantee tailor-made, comprehensive advice and execution for every client in an efficient and highly professional manner. Our structuring input is as valued by our clients as our speed of execution. We have built a reputation as the dynamic and commercially savvy team that clients want on their side at the negotiating table.
Our experience and know-how allow us to deal with all forms of commercial transactions both routine and complex and as we are not narrowly focused on any particular segment of industry, we encounter and work through challenges on ‘both sides’ of transactions.
In terms of industry coverage, we act for wide spectrum of clients in various industries including banking; manufacturing, retail, oil and gas, aviation, infrastructure and real estate, energy, technology friendly societies, internet services, healthcare, franchising, accounting and insolvency. Our clients include multi-nationals, superannuation funds, insurers, property managers, professional services firms, institutional landlords and tenants, government bodies, SMEs and private clients.
We also work closely with our disputes resolution team so that we can leverage expertise across the spectrum of a transaction more efficiently and ensure that clients receive consistent and cohesive advice in the most efficient manner possible.
Our Corporate and Commercial team specializes in providing advice and support to clients on:
• Inward Investment in Oman – Inbound foreign direct investment is one of our specialized practice areas. Al Alawi & Co has extensive experience in advising overseas companies on foreign direct investment, and on the laws, regulations and administration procedures that can have an impact on setting up operations in Oman. We prepare, apply, and follow up with the concerned departments for licenses and approvals on investments. Our firm also advises on exchange control laws and looks into applications for exchange control approvals and permits relating to inward and outbound investments.
• Company Formation & General Corporate Advisory - Al Alawi & Co attends to company formation, drafting of memoranda and articles of association, strategic planning, filing required documents and forms, applications for permits and approvals, co-ordination, inquiries, wherever required as well as due diligence prior to takeovers, mergers, purchases of companies and shares. With a specialized service team comprising qualified company secretaries, and lawyers, the firm is geared to advice on a wide spectrum of corporate, securities laws, including regular compliance requirements.
• Mergers, Acquisitions & Joint Ventures - Al Alawi & Co is a leader in mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, spin-offs and joint ventures. The challenge of mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, joint ventures and strategic alliances is to ensure that the projected value in the deal is realized. The ability of our lawyers to work together seamlessly, coordinate complex global transactions successfully, address regulatory requirements, prepare local documentation, advise on tax matters and assist in due diligence investigations ensures the delivery of commercially driven legal opinions. Al Alawi & Co maintains a specialist M&A and JV Practice Group that is amongst the largest of any Omani law firm. Our Al Alawi team offers applied expertise - based on our involvement in headline transactions including acquisitions, takeover bids, hostile bid situations, mergers, demergers and reorganizations.
• Partnership & Franchise - We are involved with virtually all aspects of business relations and, in particular, deal with negotiations, draft and advice on a wide variety of commercial contracts, both domestic and international. These include advising clients on manufacturing, distribution and agency issues, outsourcing, partnering arrangements and regulatory matters. We offer you the experience and capability of a team that regularly works on the most important, innovative and complex matters.
• Restructuring - Increasing complexity and volatility in the international markets, combined with the inevitable integration of regional markets led even some of the biggest companies to significant financial difficulties in the present. Through a combination of our Restructuring Team’s expertise, regulatory know-how and sector-specific expertise of our consultants we are able to provide tailored solutions to any client facing tough choices. We combine the breadth of our firm’s Corporate Practice with the expertise of our Litigation Team to support client companies facing distress. To that extent, Al Alawi & Co advises and represents debtor companies and their boards, banks, lenders and creditors who can, in turn, expect exceptional risk analysis, superior project management skills and pragmatic advice.
• Equity & Venture - Al Alawi & Co provides advice to banks, private and registered funds, brokers, asset managers, investment banks and diversified financial institutions on a broad range of transactions, product development, regulation and structural issues. The firm’s expertise in this area includes advising on the complete life cycle of funds right from structuring and establishment, fund investments through to exit strategy. We continuously monitor the latest developments and remain industry leaders as proven by our participation in some of past years’ highest-profile deals. Our unique value proposition stems from the absolute commitment of attorneys and multi-disciplinary experts that focus on various aspects of private equity in the local and regional market. We believe that the key to an outstanding private equity practice lies in the seamless integration of legal know-how, market expertise, understanding of trends and a team that has the breadth and depth needed to tackle the most complex transactions. We form a specialized team for every client to ensure we include lawyers with nuanced understanding of the transaction at hand, having expert knowledge about the industry and outstanding legal competencies. Through our representation of a diverse group of investors, we have established a track record of adding value to our clients’ fundraising and have developed an acute understanding of customs and practices in the private funds marketplace. That, in turn, allows us to provide clients with the commercially driven, practical advice that they require.
• Capital Markets - Al Alawi & Co has a well-established Capital Markets Practice. Leading investment banks, multinational companies, private equity funds and asset management companies rely on us for the most current advice on capital markets, disclosure and corporate governance matters, securities regulatory issues and financial transaction structuring. The scope and depth of our unique understanding of the Omani securities market is our strength that enables us to offer clients seamless advice across markets in their worldwide financing activities involving Oman. At Al Alawi & Co we advise on spectrum of legal, commercial and compliance issues significant to capital markets, including portfolio investments, equity offerings, vetting of offer documents, applications to regulatory authorities, statutory fillings, listing and reporting requirements, private placements, foreign institutional investors, derivative and structured products, public offers, and other general advice on securities laws. The strong relationships we build with every listed client enable us to effectively support their future requirements.
• Tax - Al Alawi & Co provides quality tax advice and assistance to its clients. We maintain a specialized Tax Team, staffed with qualified professionals. We advise on various aspects of taxation laws in Oman, Oman’s tax treaties. The firm is especially competent in advising and assisting on cross-border taxation issues, tax implications on grant of employee stock options to Omani employees, tax planning for investments in Oman, tax implications of deputation of expatriates to Oman, indirect tax laws in Oman, service tax, customs duty, excise duty and stamp duty and provides legal representation before various Omani tax authorities including the customs department and stamp office.
Al Alawi & Co advises on spectrum of legal, commercial and compliance issues in M&A or JV transaction, such as:
• Assisting in conceptualization and structuring of the transaction
• New ventures combining complementary skills and technologies
• Negotiating agreements
• Joint ventures as a way of entry into emerging markets
• Preparing and negotiating letters of intent
• Conducting legal due-diligence reviews
• Assisting in obtaining regulatory approvals
• Structuring alternatives such as joint ventures and strategic alliances
• Negotiating and documenting various forms of transactions