Ian Dalley

Lawyer | Arbitrator | Engineer

MEng CEng FIET FEI FCIArb C.Arb

Ian is a former managing partner of an international law firm with over 35 years’ experience in the engineering sector, either as an engineer or as a lawyer – most of it in the Middle East. He works as an arbitrator as well as undertaking project structuring, contract drafting and negotiation, project troubleshooting and all forms of dispute resolution.

Key Specialisms

Major Engineering, Infrastructure & Construction Projects | Public Procurement | Long Term Supply Agreements | Concessions (e.g.: PPP/PFI/BOT/IPP/IWP) | Operations and Maintenance | Technology Licensing | Health & Safety

Industry Sectors

Power generation | Power transmission | Oil & gas | Petrochemical | Desalination | District Cooling | Wastewater | Airports | Rail | Highways | Manufacturing | Defence | Shipbuilding | IT | Telecoms | Leisure & Entertainment | Mixed Use Real Estate | Land reclamation

Experienced Arbitrator

  • Over 15 years’ experience as an arbitrator, including co-arbitrator on a USD 120m dispute and tribunal president on a USD 50m dispute
  • Chartered Arbitrator (2013) and Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, and their first ever Course Director in the Middle East (2009)
  • Listed on 10 arbitration panels across the globe

Former international law firm partner

Professional Engineer

Dispute resolution specialist

  • Experience with ad-hoc, ICC, LCIA, ICSID, UNCITRAL, DIAC and ADCCAC arbitrations
  • As arbitration counsel, he has headed a team of 24 lawyers for a sum in dispute in excess of USD 5.7 billion, over a period of six years

Accomplished transactional lawyer

  • Examples of transactional work include sole legal responsibility for drafting and negotiating a USD 4 billion construction contract in the Middle East
  • In-depth understanding of the inter-relation of rights and obligations on complex multi-contract projects
  • Has worked on numerous IPPs, IWPs and other concession projects

Seasoned project counsel

  • Vast experience in trouble-shooting “problem” projects throughout the Middle East, through the entire project life-cycle
  • Deep understanding of the practical and commercial realities of doing business and managing projects in the region
  • Has “lived” his own contracts many times, i.e.: engaged as project counsel on contracts he drafted, in some cases for build periods of over 5 years

Middle East expertise

  • Resident continuously in the Middle East since early 2007
  • Engaged by a number of Middle East Government entities in drafting new laws and regulations
  • Significant practical experience on the interaction between local Courts and arbitration proceedings

Dispute Avoidance

  • Highly adept at resolving disputes without the need for formal proceedings
  • Accredited Mediator with the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution (2009)
  • Previously advised the Office of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council on drafting the new Abu Dhabi government FIDIC contract which introduced mandatory standing DAABs in 2023

Fully Technology Literate

  • Trained in Primavera P6 – a useful skill when analysing delay
  • Comfortable with working 100% electronically with no hard copy documents
  • “Green” arbitration – remote hearings and all-electronic proceedings

Previous Jurisdictional Experience

United Arab Emirates | Kingdom of Saudi Arabia | State of Qatar | Sultanate of Oman | Kingdom of Bahrain | State of Kuwait | Republic of Iraq | Syrian Arabic Republic | Arab Republic of Egypt | Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan | Kingdom of Morocco | England & Wales | Scotland | Gibraltar | Bailiwick of Jersey | New Zealand | Republic of India | Republic of Ghana | Federal Republic of Nigeria

Legal consultancy and arbitrator services in the Middle East are provided through AVID Services FZ LLC (آفيد للخدمات ش ذ م م), a company incorporated and licensed in the United Arab Emirates (Fujairah Creative City Free Zone Company registration no. 18606/2023).