Addleshaw Goddard has announced the appointment of Philip Dowsett to spearhead the launch of an Investment Management and Funds practice servicing clients operating to and from the Middle East. 

Philip joins the Dubai office of Addleshaw Goddard from Dechert and has operated across the Middle East for more than 15 years. He will also join an international team of 30+ lawyers specialising in different aspects of private funds operating across AGs offices in Europe.

Philip has a market-leading practice advising on fund structuring and formation (including traditional closed-ended funds to structured evergreen platforms, single-asset vehicles, and investment platforms), fund governance, and investment management matters in and across the Middle East. In addition, Philip regularly advises on complex cross-border mergers and acquisitions, divestitures, joint ventures, private equity and venture capital matters. 

He is singled out as one of only six "Leading Individuals" in "Investment Fund Formation and Management" in the United Arab Emirates by Legal 500, and more generally as one of the most highly regarded M&A lawyers in the Middle East.

Philip's clients include regional and international investors, private equity and venture capital firms (within the DIFC and ADGM and outside), family offices, sovereign wealth funds and corporates. His clients come from a range of industries, including energy, healthcare and life sciences, technology, infrastructure, retail and finance. 

Andrew Johnston, Addleshaw Goddard Head of Middle East and Asia, welcomed Philip saying: 

"Phil is one of the best-known names in his specialist field and we are delighted he has joined us to lead a new service-line and build on the current regional fund matters being handled by the European team. He has worked with fund managers from around the world on their Middle East platforms and structures, as well as regional family offices and corporates looking to establish PE-like structures and his arrival presents an exciting opportunity for us to respond to client demand and quickly establish a highly credible practice spanning the entire investment cycle."

Philip Dowsett, Addleshaw Goddard Partner and Head of Investment Funds MENA, added:

"The Middle East is increasingly becoming home to a number of asset managers from the UK, Europe, Asia and other jurisdictions as well as a favourable regime for family offices from the region and outside. I share AGs ambition to build the number one investment funds practice in the region, as well as bolster its leading M&A and Corporate practice, and am looking forward to sharing with clients operating in this space the benefits of a growing full-service platform, especially with AG's broad Middle East presence in the UAE, Oman, and Qatar, and the opening of a new office in Riyadh."

The arrival of Phillip brings the total number of AG partners operating across the Middle East to 22.

Addleshaw Goddard's Private Funds Group delivers a broad spectrum of international mandates across PE, private equity real estate, infrastructure, and debt. It has particular expertise on complex hybrid funds models that are changing the funds landscape, such as long dated hybrid funds encompassing the best features of open ended and closed ended funds. It also stands out for its work on sustainability and social impact related matters and has established an impressive record of advising challenger GPs, alongside its long-standing work for high profile institutional managers.

The team's successful GP practice is complemented by a substantial investor representation practice that has advised on capital deployments by LPs in excess of USD 100 billion.  In the last year it has acted as fund counsel on multiple high profile fund raises throughout Singapore, Channel Islands and Luxembourg as well as on fund investments in Delaware, Cayman, Luxembourg and Singapore.

Market recognition includes being awarded the accolade of Private Equity Wire: Law Firm of the Year – Fund Structuring in both 2022 and again in 2023 and being shortlisted for The Drawdown Awards as Fund Formation Team of the Year (in both 2022 and again in 2023) and being finalist in The Lawyer Awards 2022 (Funds Team of the Year).