Paul Hastings Further Strengthens International Cross-Practice Team With Finance Partner in Abu Dhabi

ABU DHABI – Paul Hastings LLP announced today the addition of corporate finance lawyer William Watson as a partner in Abu Dhabi.

Joining from White & Case LLP, Watson has extensive experience advising borrowers and lenders across a broad range of debt finance matters, including private credit, leveraged finance, restructuring and general corporate finance. He advises banks, private credit funds, direct lenders, export credit agencies, sponsors and corporate and sovereign borrowers in the Middle East, Europe and Africa on both conventional and Sharia-compliant finance transactions.

“We are excited to welcome Will to the firm,” said partner Mo Nurmohamed, co-chair of the Global Finance practice. “His extensive experience in complex finance transactions in the region strengthens our existing offering in Abu Dhabi and further enhances our ability to serve clients in the region and globally on their most significant matters.”

Watson is the latest addition to a broad eight-partner, 20-lawyer team from White & Case that has reunited at Paul Hastings over the last three months across offices in Abu Dhabi, London, Paris and Houston. He will work closely with partners Din Eshanov, Ibaad Hakim, George Kazakov, Stefan Mrozinski, Xavier Petet and Habeeb Rahman — who joined as part of a transformative energy and infrastructure team announced in April — bringing additional corporate finance experience to the international cross-practice group.

The new team members also collaborate with Energy and Infrastructure partners Gregory Tan and Rob Freedman, who joined the firm in 2022 in New York. The team adds additional, premier international capabilities to the firm’s highly ranked Energy and Infrastructure practice in the U.S., which tops the league tables, including IJGlobal, where the firm is ranked #1 in North American Project Finance and #2 in Global Project Finance, as well as Infralogic and Proximo. 

“Will’s arrival marks another significant step in the strategic expansion of our global energy and infrastructure platform,” said Tan. “The group’s growth continues to elevate our ability to advise clients on complex, cross-border matters and bolsters our commitment to delivering premier legal services in the UAE and beyond.”

One of the world’s leading legal advisers for leveraged finance and private credit, Paul Hastings’ Global Finance practice consistently ranks among the market’s elite for complex, high-value transactions. The team represents virtually every top investment bank and direct lender through its global finance and capital markets platforms.

“I am delighted to reunite with my former colleagues and help build out Paul Hastings’ UAE and broader regional platform,” said Watson. “I look forward to supporting the energy and infrastructure team in Abu Dhabi while adding experience that is synergistic with the firm’s exceptional global finance practice, in particular its Band 1 private credit and lender side finance offering.”

About Paul Hastings

With widely recognized elite teams across 17 core practices, Paul Hastings is a premier law firm with a culture of excellence focused on providing intellectual capital and superior execution globally to the world’s leading investment banks, asset managers and corporations. For more information, visit www.paulhastings.com.