Allen & Overy (A&O) and Shearman & Sterling (Shearman) have announced the appointment of David Foster as regional managing partner for the Middle East, Turkey and Africa.
Foster will lead the soon-to-be combined firm’s regional practice upon completion of the merger on May 1, 2024. He will serve an initial term of two years.
His appointment follows the recent election of Khalid Garousha as senior partner of A&O Shearman.
Abu-Dhabi based Garousha has led A&O’s Middle East and Turkey operation since 2020. In addition to the Middle East and Turkey, Foster, who is based in Dubai, will oversee the firm’s operations in Africa.
Garousha said:
“I am delighted that David has agreed to take on this role. He epitomises the unrivalled quality and excellence of A&O Shearman in the region and will no doubt lead our combined regional practice to even greater success. From May 1, the Middle East and Turkey region will also be joined by our colleagues in Morocco and South Africa, and David will assume responsibility as the managing partner of this region.”
A&O-lifer Foster trained with the firm in London, and moved to Dubai as an associate in 2008, according to his LinkedIn profile. He was promoted to partner in 2015 and currently heads the firm’s Middle East and Turkey corporate practice. Foster said:
“As A&O Shearman, we’ll be able to bring together the global breadth of the world’s third largest integrated law firm, with the deep local expertise of over 200 lawyers in the META region. I look forward to continuing to work with our clients and our people to grow our regional practice to even greater heights.”
News of the merger between A&O and Shearman was first reported in May last year. In October, it received the green light to go ahead when 99% of partners at both firms approved the plans.
A&O Shearman is set to become the third largest law firm in the world, with combined revenues of approximately $3.4 billion and 3,950 lawyers across 48 offices.
In March, A&O opened an office in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Foster will oversee A&O Shearman’s six offices across the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Morocco, and South Africa.
