Hessam Kalantar

Hessam is admitted to the Bars of New York, USA and Ontario, Canada. He is a graduate of McGill University, where he earned both common and civil law degrees. Hessam has almost twenty years of firm and in-house practice experience in Canada, US and the Middle East, including at some of the most pre-eminent global law firms.

In New York and Dubai Hessam has acted for leading private equity, venture capital and other providers of capital in connection with investments in technology and e- commerce, media, financial services, insurance, healthcare, telecommunications, energy, hospitality and food and beverage industries, among others.

He has worked on many landmark financing and restructuring transactions, including on one of largest restructurings in the Middle East and the largest syndicated lending in Turkey.

His experience in the Middle East encompasses corporate transactions of all stripes, mainly M&A, joint ventures, corporate finance and restructuring transactions. He advises US and European clients on market entry and capital deployment in the Middle East, and regional investors eyeing investment opportunities in the US. And Hessam’s technology practice, including advising technology start-ups, spans the period from the dotcom and business process outsourcing booms through to cloud computing and Fintech. After over a decade in global law firms, Hessam spent many years as Deputy General Counsel at a significant, emerging markets telecommunications investment group operating across several geographies. Hessam founded KBLG in 2018.

Poulad Berenjforoush

Poulad is an Australian-qualified lawyer. He has extensive domestic and international experience working across multiple areas of the law representing project developers, oil and gas companies, energy and utility companies, start-ups and international contractors in major Australian and international transactions relating to corporate, power and energy, and social infrastructure projects.

Poulad is a trusted advisor who is dedicated to delivering quality legal services and commercial and strategic solutions to domestic and international clients. He has advised on several ground-breaking energy and corporate projects in the Middle East and Asia.

Poulad holds a combined Bachelor of Economics / Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of Sydney and has an LL.M. in international business from Georgetown University Law Center. Prior to joining KBLG, Poulad worked in the Sydney, Singapore and Dubai offices of several leading international law firms, focusing on corporate transactions and major projects.

Meenakshi Jham

Meena is an accomplished corporate and commercial lawyer with over 12 years of experience across the UAE and Canadian markets. She specializes in mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance, secured loan transactions, franchising, employment law, and complex contract negotiations. Meena has advised clients across a range of industries, including retail, education, technology, manufacturing, and healthcare, helping them navigate intricate legal frameworks to achieve their strategic business objectives. In addition, she provides counsel on estate planning, including wills, trusts, and foundations.
Meena is a Canadian-qualified lawyer licensed in Ontario. She is also a trained mediator and a professional member of the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP).

Ushbah Al-Ain

Ushbah Al-Ain is an England & Wales-qualified solicitor with expertise in cross-border M&A in the Middle East, focusing on the technology (including FinTech) and infrastructure sectors. She also advises on corporate services and has experience in shareholders’ agreements, fundraising, startup investments, corporate governance and regulatory matters.

Experienced in UAE and GCC region commercial matters, Ushbah has substantial expertise in entity setup, regulatory compliance and corporate structuring. She also has experience in DIFC litigation, as well as contentious and non-contentious IP matters.

Fluent in English, Urdu, Panjabi, and Hindi. Ushbah holds a Bachelor’s in Business Administration from Hult International Business School, a Graduate Diploma in Law from BPP Law School and the Legal Practice Course from the University of Law in the UK.

Solara Mohamed

Solara is a corporate and commercial lawyer and advises on all manner of commercial and corporate agreements, entity formations, litigation management, insurance, corporate restructuring, and regulatory compliance. Solara has broad in-house counsel experience, particularly in the oil and gas industry. In her previous experience, she also served as a Compliance Officer, advising on a wide range of regulatory matters and supporting financial and regulatory risk management initiatives. She also advises on cross-border agreements and sector-specific compliance.

Solara holds an LLB from Cardiff University and completed her postgraduate studies and Legal Practice Course (LPC) at the City, University of London.
Solara is also a native Arabic speaker.

Kate Symons

Kate is an IPREG regulated, CITMA certified Chartered UK Trade Mark Attorney. With over 12 years of PQE experience, Kate has worked with a range of clients across the globe from SMEs to large blue-chip corporations providing advice on all aspects of contentious and non-contentious matters in the field of trademarks, designs, copyrights and domain names. Having worked in-house where her IP journey began, and in private practice in the UK, Australia and the UAE, Kate has a wealth of experience in IP, particularly trademarks, and her expertise includes advising on brand protection strategies, trademark clearance searching, filing and prosecuting applications, recording assignments and licenses, processing renewals, trademark watching, handling oppositions and cancellation actions, advising on infringement, drafting consent and negotiating settlement agreements.

Priyanka Pathak – Head of Compliance and MLRO

Priyanka has over 11 years of professional experience in legal, compliance, and finance operations spanning India, Qatar, and the UAE. She has held key roles in multinational firms, banks, and law firms.

Priyanka is ACAMS certified, holds a CS qualification from ICSI – India, and is a member of CISI (The Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment). She possesses a deep understanding of the AML framework, including policies, procedures, systems, and controls.

Priyanka is adept at navigating compliance requirements set by regulatory bodies such as the UAE Federal and FSRA (ADGM). She excels in designing and implementing compliance programs and monitoring their effectiveness to ensure alignment with regulatory standards