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Richard Davies

Richard Davies

Partner

Abu Dhabi/Dubai

T: +971 2 652 0330

T: +971 0 4 511 9777

M: + 971 (0) 50 8184427

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Biography

Richard has been based in the UAE since early 2008 and is the Managing Partner of BCLP’s Middle East operations.

Richard is highly experienced in both transactions and disputes arising out of construction projects, particularly those with an international flavour. He has acted for government departments, developers, occupiers, lenders, contractors and consultants.

He advises on procurement strategy, drafting and negotiating building and ancillary contracts, advising on claims (often during project execution) and represents clients in proceedings.

He is listed in Legal 500, Chambers and Who’s Who Legal as one of the leading specialists in the UAE.

Client Story

Client Story

Getting vertiport pioneer Skyports off the ground in Dubai

London based start-up Skyports Infrastructure has announced its pioneering ‘vertiport’ operations in Dubai in collaboration with Dubai’s Road and Transport Authority (RTA) and electric air taxi provider, Joby Aviation.

Read more Read more

Admissions

  • England and Wales

Related Capabilities

  • Construction Disputes

  • Infrastructure

  • Real Estate Disputes

  • Commercial Construction

  • Commercial Real Estate

  • Litigation & Dispute Resolution

  • Business & Commercial Disputes

  • International Arbitration

  • Energy Transition

  • Aerospace & Defense

  • Regulation, Compliance & Advisory

  • Healthcare & Life Sciences

  • Real Estate

Experience

  • Design And Build Defects In A Landmark Hotel - Led the team representing one of the Middle East’s largest hotel and mall owners in pursuing claims against the original design and build team for defects in a landmark hotel in Dubai. Developed a claim strategy which included the coordination and documentation of independent expert investigations into the extent of the defects, reviewing and analysing historic project records (including interviewing key personnel) to ascertain contractual responsibility for them and advising client on prospects of success. Pursued a robust but non-confrontational strategy with the other parties, enabling the client to progress commercial discussions and contributions towards remedial costs.
  • Residential Mixed-Use Development In Myanmar - Drafted and successfully negotiated on behalf of a developer a design and build contract and ancillary documents for a mixed-use development in Myanmar. Tax and for-ex considerations were overcome by the use of an on-shore/off-shore procurement structure and coordination procedure.
  • New airport development in GCC - Represented the master systems integrator for a major airport project in a GCC country in relation to its disputes with the project Owner and certain subcontractors in connection with responsibility for delay and extra costs. Matters include contractual adjudication proceedings and arbitration (under ICC rules).
  • Haramain High Speed Rail Project - Handled (as part of a multi-disciplinary team) the engineering and technology aspects of the multi-phase Haramain High Speed Rail Project, linking the Holy cities of Makkah and Medinah in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Particular challenges arose for the Phase 2 packages (which included not only the rolling stock, operation and maintenance of the railway but also the design and engineering of track and systems) and their integration with the separately procured train stations at challenging locations. The project is now nearing completion.

Related Insights

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Insights
Mar 21, 2024

The Evolving Real Estate and Construction Disputes Landscape

As part of Riyadh International Disputes Week (RIDW), Horizons & Co. and BCLP hosted a discussion on the evolving real estate and construction dispute resolution landscape in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and wider region. This interactive discussion involved questions from the audience throughout the session and resulted in many meaningful points being raised. Below is a high-level takeaway of the key issues discussed and points raised.
News
Feb 20, 2024

Chambers Global 2024

Insights
Nov 13, 2023

The parties’ perspective: a closer look at the updated UAE Federal Arbitration Law

The recent changes to the UAE Federal Arbitration Regime (set out in Federal Decree 15 of 2023 (“the Amendment”) have been rightly welcomed by the arbitration community, especially in relation to the regulation of arbitrators’ conduct and recognition of the increased use and worth of technology platforms. These proactive amendments to a still relatively new law do indeed represent a robust approach to keeping up to date with fast-evolving practice, and a strong statement of intent as regards the UAE’s continuing ambition to be a leading hub for dispute resolution. There has been much excellent and thought-provoking commentary on the content of the Amendment from practitioners and others in the arbitration community. So, for a slightly different take, we thought it might be interesting to look at the whole landscape from the perspective of the parties, and/or their transactional advisors, at the front-end.

Related Insights

Awards
Nov 10, 2025
Firm wins ‘Corporate Team of the Year’ at Inaugural Law Middle East Awards 2025
Awards
Oct 22, 2025
Double win for BCLP’s Middle East Team at 2025 Legal Era Awards
News
Apr 01, 2025
BCLP Ranked in Legal 500 EMEA 2025
News
Feb 06, 2025
BCLP Announces Launch in Saudi Arabia
News
Jan 07, 2025
BCLP Abu Dhabi bolsters Real Estate team with new partner hire
Insights
Mar 21, 2024
The Evolving Real Estate and Construction Disputes Landscape
As part of Riyadh International Disputes Week (RIDW), Horizons & Co. and BCLP hosted a discussion on the evolving real estate and construction dispute resolution landscape in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and wider region. This interactive discussion involved questions from the audience throughout the session and resulted in many meaningful points being raised. Below is a high-level takeaway of the key issues discussed and points raised.
News
Mar 20, 2024
BCLP advises Skyports on global first passenger air taxi service launch
News
Feb 20, 2024
Chambers Global 2024
Insights
Nov 13, 2023
The parties’ perspective: a closer look at the updated UAE Federal Arbitration Law
The recent changes to the UAE Federal Arbitration Regime (set out in Federal Decree 15 of 2023 (“the Amendment”) have been rightly welcomed by the arbitration community, especially in relation to the regulation of arbitrators’ conduct and recognition of the increased use and worth of technology platforms. These proactive amendments to a still relatively new law do indeed represent a robust approach to keeping up to date with fast-evolving practice, and a strong statement of intent as regards the UAE’s continuing ambition to be a leading hub for dispute resolution. There has been much excellent and thought-provoking commentary on the content of the Amendment from practitioners and others in the arbitration community. So, for a slightly different take, we thought it might be interesting to look at the whole landscape from the perspective of the parties, and/or their transactional advisors, at the front-end.