December 2012

Continuing its support of Qatar’s bar association to provide professional development opportunities for lawyers, the ABA Rule of Law Initiative (ABA ROLI) coordinated with Qatar University’s College of Law to host its second series of continuing legal education (CLE) this Fall. ABA ROLI legal specialists Daniel Fitzgibbon,  Stephen Kotev and Irving Kagan led the three workshops for practicing lawyers.

Fitzgibbon led discussions focusing on law practice management, including establishing a law firm, attracting and retaining clients and running a law office. Kotev covered alternative dispute resolution, conflict analysis and mediation, focusing on how to avoid unnecessary litigation, while Kagan led participants in examining the roles and responsibilities of in-house counsel and best practices in working with outside counsel.

ABA ROLI also hosted a conference on strengthening the legal profession and on increasing professional development opportunities for Qatari lawyers in October. Speakers included Hasan Bin Abdullah Al-Ghanem, the Qatari justice minister, Karen Johnson, an ABA ROLI legal specialist and a member of the Illinois Supreme Court’s Minimum Continuing Legal Education Board, and and Irving Kagan. Participants discussed legal ethics and how to strengthen the legal profession through CLE courses that enhance both substantive legal knowledge and practical skills of Qatari legal professionals.

ABA ROLI’s work in Qatar is supported by the U.S. Department of State’s Middle East Partnership Initiative.

To learn more about our work in Qatar, contact the ABA Rule of Law Initiative at rol@americanbar.org.