Pinsent Masons appoints first employment practice head in Riyadh

Having trained with Pinsent Masons, Sairah has since spent more than a decade blending in-house roles in the United Kingdom and KSA, with private practice experience. She held prominent dual roles as both senior in-house counsel and Vice Dean of the College of Law at the University of Business & Technology, and was senior in-house counsel and Head of the Law Department at Dar Al-Hekma University. Sairah joins after several years at Dentons, where she spearheaded the employment practice for KSA, whilst undertaking multiple other leadership roles.   

Sairah’s practice will focus on advising our global and regional corporate clients on their HR and employment law issues, covering both contentious and non-contentious employment law work. Her practice also extends to corporate structuring, corporate compliance and regulatory matters, as well as cross-sector transactions, with a specialism in education. Her client base ranges from private and listed companies to ultra-high net worth individuals, family offices, as well as sovereign wealth funds. 

Commenting on Sairah’s arrival, Middle East employment head Luke Tapp said: “Welcoming Sairah back to the firm as the inaugural employment practice head of our new Riyadh office is another milestone moment in the expansion of our presence in the region. Thanks to the breadth of her in-house and private practice experience, Sairah offers market-leading expertise to clients. Her arrival underscores our commitment to growing our global employment and reward team.”  

On returning to the firm, Sairah said: “This is an exciting time to be back at Pinsent Masons as the firm continues to grow in the Middle East. With my years of experience on the ground in KSA, I look forward to combining my local and international expertise with that of the team to continue to achieve outstanding results for our clients across our key sectors.” 

Sairah continued: “Employment and HR related advice across the Middle East, particularly KSA, is a fundamental aspect of all corporate activity within the region.  It is an essential aspect of business operations for all corporations which are operating or investing in the Middle East region. The employment landscape is also rapidly shifting as employers respond to global geopolitical forces, the pace of technological change and, the issuance of new laws and regulations on the ground as we move closer to achieving KSA Vision 2030.”   

On this latest hire in Riyadh, Ibrahim Alajaji, Managing Partner of the KSA Office said: "Sairah’s expertise in employment law will be crucial as we enhance our capabilities in KSA. Given Saudi Arabia's evolving regulatory landscape, employment law remains a key aspect of business strategy and Sairah's leadership will further improve our ability to assist clients in navigating these complexities." 

Sairah’s arrival is the latest in the firm’s recent series of partner hires in the Middle East, following that of Marie Chowdhry in Dubai and Rena L. Scott in Riyadh in the last few months.