Middle East

Serle Court is widely regarded as a stand-out set in the Middle East, consistently achieving top-tier rankings and industry recognition.

Over the past decade, our sustained presence in the region and the high esteem in which our barristers are held, have established Chambers as the leading English set operating in the market.

Acting for clients across a broad spectrum of sectors and specialisms, our barristers’ work in the Middle East includes:

• Contentious and non-contentious trusts and probate work
• Complex commercial litigation
• International fraud, asset tracing and freezing injunctions
• Insolvency and financial services litigation

Serle Court members continue to act in the most significant cases litigated before the DIFC Courts and maintain a strong presence in the Middle East arbitration market, as both counsel and arbitrators. Frequent visitors to the region, our barristers combine technical excellence with a deep understanding of local practice, culture, and some even the language.

Serle Court is also associated with the first comprehensive, and now leading practitioners’ text, on DIFC law and the Rules of the DIFC Courts DIFC Courts Practice (Second Edition, published in 2024). This reflects not only our knowledge of procedural rules but also insight into the market.

In 2026, Serle Court was named ‘English Bar in the Middle East: Commercial Set of the Year’ at the Legal 500 Middle East and North Africa Awards.

One of our barristers is the co-founder and Chair of BarMENA, a network of London lawyers with an interest in better understanding the laws of the Middle East.

Our dedicated Middle East Practice Director, Daniel Wheeler, maintains close and regular contact with clients and contacts throughout the region and within the DIFC, ensuring the delivery of a consistently high standard of service.