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.
Fatima Marjan
Fatima is a corporate and commercial lawyer and advises on all manner of commercial contracts, including supply, distribution, licensing, franchising, outsourcing and joint venture agreements. Fatima has also advised on several fund mandates for investment funds domiciled in ADGM and DIFC, and on regulatory and compliance matters relevant to fund management activities. Fatima also oversees the firm’s corporate service offerings.
Fatima is a graduate of the Michigan State University College of Law. While at the College of Law, Fatima obtained extensive training in negotiation and mediation through a specialized Alternative Dispute Resolution program. She was also a member of the College’s national negotiation team and was selected as a judge for the College’s intraschool negotiation competition. Prior to law school, she received her Honours Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science and History from York University in Toronto, Canada.
Fatima is fluent in Arabic.
Samuel Miller
Samuel is qualified to practice law in the State of New York and recently joined the team as a Junior Associate. Samuel is active in the firm’s investment funds practice, advising on fund structuring and offering documentation in the UAE financial free zones. Before joining KBLG, Samuel was part of the in-house legal team of a respected venture capital firm based in the Abu Dhabi Global Market. During law school, Samuel gained experience at a cross-border business law boutique operating in the United States and MENA, where he assisted emerging companies with matters related to formations and financings, and he also supported venture capital and private equity firms with fund structuring and direct investment transactions.
Samuel is also active in the firm’s corporate services business, advising on corporate formations in jurisdictions such as Abu Dhabi Global Market and Dubai International Financial Centre.
Samuel holds a J.D. from the University of Iowa College of Law, a master’s degree from University of Chicago, and a bachelor’s degree from Emory University.
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.
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.