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Brian Meenagh

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Brian Meenagh is a partner in the Dubai office of Latham & Watkins. His practice focuses primarily on:

  • Complex technology transactions, projects, and joint ventures
  • Procurement and sourcing, including outsourcing and offshoring
  • Data privacy and cyber-security compliance
  • Financial technology (fintech) and block chain technology
Contact:Read more about Brian Meenagh
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United Arab Emirates (UAE) free zones are attractive jurisdictions for early and growth-stage companies. Free zones are designed to encourage startups and foreign investors through simpler processes and procedures, permiting 100% foreign ownership. However, the more than 45 free zones in the UAE each have their own  rules and regulations, so choosing the right free zone can be a complicated decision.

Latham & Watkins, in partnership with VentureSouq, has developed the UAE Free Zone Navigator, an innovative online resource to…

Emirate of Sharjah cityscape waterfront rising above Al Noor Island at city downtown in the UAE

Four of Latham & Watkins’ leading emerging company partners in Silicon Valley, Luke Bergstrom, Tad Freese, Jim Morrone and JD Marple, recently hosted a webinar titled “Achieving Successful Outcomes as a Non-US Company Investing in or Acquiring Technology Companies in Silicon Valley”. The webinar can be viewed here.

In this blog we have sought to draw out some of the key observations in the webinar that are relevant to Middle East entities considering investing in US technology companies.

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The compliance world will change dramatically for a number of GCC organizations on 25 May 2018. In just over one year’s time GCC organizations that:

  1. have a branch, subsidiary or single representative in the European Union (“EU”);
  2. do not have a physical presence in the EU, but offer goods or services to data subjects in the EU; or
  3. neither have a physical presence in the EU nor offer goods or services to people in the EU, but monitor

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The use of “unmanned aerial systems” or “drones” for commercial, government and consumer purposes has significantly increased in recent years across the globe. In the UAE, the office of H.H.Drones_002_sngleColClr Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, introduced the Drones for Good Award at the Government Summit held in Dubai in February 2014 to promote the development of drone technology in the consumer market in the UAE.

This post explores the applicable federal and emirate-specific regulations, as well as the various concerns surrounding the use of drones (for commercial, government and consumer purposes).

Regulation at the Federal Level

At the federal level, the main pieces of legislation applicable to the use of drones in the UAE are Federal Resolution No. 2 of 2015 regarding Light Air Sports Practice Regulations (Federal Law) and the Civil Aviation Regulation (CAR) Part VIII Subpart 10 on the Operation of Unmanned Aerial Systems within the UAE (UAS Regulations), and at the emirate level, the Dubai Law No. 7 of 2015 on Airspace Security and Safety in the Emirate of Dubai (Dubai Law).

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This is the first in a series of articles considering legal issues relating to bitcoin, cryptocurrencies and blockchain in the UAE. In this article we focus on the legal status of bitcoin and address the question of whether bitcoin is banned in the UAE. In part two we will consider the case for regulating bitcoin and cryptocurrencies and in part three we will consider legal issues relating to the adoption of blockchain technology by public and private entities in the…

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New Regulations balance innovation in the payments sector with safety, security and maintaining the public’s trust in the UAE payment ecosystem.

After a long period of consultation, on 1 January 2017 the Central Bank in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) issued the Regulatory Framework for Stored Values and Electronic Payment Systems (Electronic Payment Regulation). The Electronic Payment Regulation’s key message is that all eligible participating institutions (whether they are banks, payment networks, telecommunications companies, government…

Virtual Currency B - SingleOutsourcing has historically not been a major pillar in Middle East public and private sector organisation’s strategic architecture. While the benefits of outsourcing are understood and recognised, organisations have sought to engage with major outsourced service providers through managed service agreements and joint ventures. This approach has generally worked well. It has enabled local organisations to maintain control of their infrastructure, environments, people and third-party contracts and, in the case of joint ventures, provided organisations with the potential opportunity to…

The recent showdown over renewal of certain provisions of the USA Patriot Act (often called simply the Patriot Act) and the subsequent enactment of the USA Freedom Act Abu Dhabi City_dreamstime_4315037have raised a number of questions about the ongoing impact of these laws on data traversing or being stored in the United States. While the new law takes the NSA out of the direct business of maintaining metadata (which includes phone number called, the time and duration of the call, and location…

An unexpected surge in production coupled with weakened global demand has resulted in a 50 percent drop in the price of crude oil since June 2014 and currently averaging US$50 a barrel. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) announced it would leave market forces to determine crude oil price and would not cut oil output. The current oil price is the lowest it has been since Spring 2009. As oil and gas companies begin to…

Digital innovation is reinventing the retail experience. IT is changing the way retailers interact with customers by integrating sales and communication channels, enabling in-store digital interfaces and diversifying payment platforms.

As retailers look to fuse existing operational silos in favour of an omnichannel strategy, the role of IT is increasingly recognized as critical to achieving seamless and integrated retail experiences.

Omnichannel retailing combines the bricks and clicks aspects of retail, allowing for multiple, easily accessible retail touchpoints or channels. At…