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Meet the Team : Message From The President : Ziad Ali Founder CEO: Bassel Khalil Managing Editor: Hoda Ahmed Nafee Welcome to the 4th edition of The Law Magazine. Senior Writer : Noran Abdelbaki We are eager to introduce “Raising the Bar” issue Editor : Khaled Al-Khashab and proudly announcing that with this edition we Business Development : Heba have reached 18,000 copies featuring more than - Abo Slima 20 partners, judges and top law firms not only in Marketing : Salma Farouq Creative Media : Mahmoud Hesham Egypt but possibly the whole region. Sales : Belal El-Melih Logistics: Eman ahmed Nafee Our digital circulations including the website and Designer: Noura Mohammed social media have successfully reached and been Writer: Abdel Rahman Sami viewed by a 150K+ reader and follower all over the www.thelawmag.com world. This year, LAW TALKS is reaching 1000 participants and 50 speakers through a highly interactive one-day event as it is tremendously growing to be the number one event to The Law Community in Egypt. In addition to our newest project LEAP “Legal Employability & Advancement Programs”, incorporation with Rule of Law Global Associates, we managed to Train over 100 practitioners all over Cairo, Giza, Mansoura, Ismailia, Menofia and Alexandria by the most modern methodologies. We are thankful to all who believed in us, our sponsors, partners, writers, speakers, instructors and participants. You are our real motivator and source of inspiration. Looking forward to sharing more success together. #Raising the Bar #The Channel to Legal Community #Lawyer’s Advocate #Be Legally Smart 5
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One of The Rising Star Lamya Gadallah By. Eman A. Nafee Q1: what motivated you to opt for a career Q2: You have studied at University of in law? Paris I (Pantheon-Sorbonne), so how far - I was originally interested in a career with the has it helped you? Ministry of Foreign Affairs pursuing the same rout - University of Paris I (Pantheon-Sorbonne) has as my parents being diplomats and law education an affiliation located in the Cairo University. I would have helped me to that end. It exceptionally graduated from it and with a degree from the provides rich knowledge that is very useful for the Cairo University, Faculty of Law. The French Ministry’s test which is not particularly available in legal education system was different from the other types of education. traditional way available at that time. We spent the first semester training on how to write, think During my first year at Law School, I was and prepare you for the upcoming years. Most of introduced to the division between public and our work was divided to three parts: dissertation, private law and eventually was more interested in legal cases and commentary on legal judgments. the private commercial and business aspects of The last was the most interesting part as it allowed the law. So I dropped the idea of pursuing a career students to comment, whether in agreement or with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and decided to disagreement, on the outcome of a judgment eventually be a private practitioner of the law. issued from the French court of cassation, which is controversial for our culture. After graduation, I started in an in-house position for less than a year in the oil and gas Honestly, law school’s four years target is to field. However, shortly thereafter it felt like it build legal aptitude to use the law as a tool. The was something else I wanted despite the very theoretical education acquired from law school convenient working hours. I, then, shifted to private delivers law graduates and not lawyers. practice at Baker & McKenzie. 14 www.thelawmag.com
Q3: You have worked in different more. Each project I work on has a challenge specializations but why are you and I come out with new things that I learn. I can consistently ranked by Chambers & say the feeling of contributing to the productivity Partners for your work in banking and of delivering a project is what I find the most finance? rewarding accomplishment. -A couple of decades ago, the Egyptian legal market started encouraging legal specializations. Q6: What are the challenges that you have Our work is similar to doctors but for businesses. faced or someone in your position would It started with time and the evolution of the face? And how do you maintain a work-life market and its needs inflicted the shaping of balance? specializations in the practice of law. Yet, it - Regarding the challenges in our profession, it is important for lawyers neither to limit their is not easy especially for females. What society specializations too much nor to limit it too early. expects from females given the different roles they are expected to play makes things more I support general training and exploration of all challenging. I have encountered situations in areas possible at the beginning of law career my career which I do not believe I would have to be able to learn and decide what the lawyer encountered have I been a male. Yet, generally it really wants to pursue. is a challenging career for both males and females when it comes to work-life balance. -With the development of my career, my specialization became mainly in the field of My main challenge was to manage both because Banking & Finance and Projects, which was I wanted both without compromising any side. shaped by the work flow and my interest in it. Maintaining a work-life balance is not easy in any Being engaged in this type of work was also very type of work, not just the legal profession, which fruitful in developing important business skills requires putting in a lot of time, effort and juggling for myself being at the end of the day a private practitioner. Q4: What’s the lawyer role in developing the community whatever male or female? - Historically, the legal profession or faculty of law in general had a prestigious social ranking. However, it came a time where it was not and would mainly attract those students with grades that would not allow them to go elsewhere. There is obviously a visible change in this mindset, which is a good sign. The community is becoming more intrigued by the law profession, which is showing very clearly in how lawyers are portrayed in the media recently and throughout the different times. Additionally, law schools are showing progress in how they deliver law education to the students. A legal professional is an important pillar to the community as it is for any system to have a legal framework. Q5: What would you consider your most significant career accomplishment to date? - I can answer this question when I retire, but as long as I am still working, I am looking for www.thelawmag.com 15
between deadlines. However, the more you grow Throughout our lives, we meet people and get up, the more you have the experience and maturity captivated by certain aspects of their personalities to handle it better. Moreover, the challenge or how they handle things. In every person I meet, changes from phase to phase with the changes I might find a trait that captivates me. Collecting all of your work and your life circumstances. The these traits in a single person that would be a role important thing is to establish a way to manage model and that is what you thrive to become. your priorities and deliverables whether in life or work that satisfies you for that specific phase. Q8: last but not least, what would be your word of advice to young lawyers and law Honestly, I do not always maintain the balance students? because I do not really believe it exists. The - I have two main advices, firstly, generally, allow point is to reach a reasonable and acceptable yourself the opportunity to explore. When I work compromise. The «balance» for me has been with interns or juniors, I always tell them there is recently full integration between life and work no right way to do it, give yourselves the chance throughout the day without separating them in to experience and learn the different areas of terms of time allocated for each but you must law. Being a lawyer, you only really acquire the have the flexibility to allow you to do that. That is knowledge from practicing the law. Practice the law not possible without the trust and support of those before, for example, heading for a master or a PhD around you on either side. I would like to take this unless of course you are decided on an academic opportunity to thank the Firm and my seniors for career, which is also good. I urge them to take the support they have given me throughout the decisions for their careers based on their own years. It would not have been possible for me to experience and not only others. maintain such a career have they not been so understanding. Secondly, a good lawyer is not just someone who knows the law. You are a professional in your field Finally, what works now does not necessary work and will need a set of skills, other than knowing the for tomorrow and you should not be rigid to the law, to succeed. You should be patient in learning idea of shifting your approaches in a way that suits and acquiring them as they differ from one stage to your changing circumstances. another. In becoming a partner in Baker McKenzie, I was tested for those set of skills expected from Q7: Being partner in one of the top law me at each stage. firms not only in Egypt, but also globally, how did that add to you? And whose Lamyaa’s role model? - Working in a global and multi-cultured institution like Baker McKenzie has been very valuable and enriching both on the personal and professional side. Firstly, the culture diversification is massive which teaches you to be open to differences and accept them. It is also of crucial importance in enriching your legal knowledge because you get to work with lawyers/professionals from different countries with different legal experiences. It opens the door to more understanding of what happens on the legal landscape around the world. You have access to others experiences and they have access to yours which is a very valuable collaborative culture. Regarding the second part of the question, I do not really believe in the single role model concept. I believe that we learn from every person we meet. 16 www.thelawmag.com
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By: Salma Farouk 1) Before we get deeper, could you please tell us about your start? I grew up in UK, I was fully educated there and effective with my background from UK. I then then I decided to move to Egypt about five years decided to look for jobs here which is when I met ago. Initially the plan was kind of a break after Mr. Maher Milad who took me to work in his firm University and then I started thinking about starting and I have been here ever since. a career in Egypt and how I would be more 2) There is always a reason behind our choices, what was the reason behind choosing to study law and being a lawyer? It was suggested to me by one of my teachers I should be a lawyer after that I started looking into after we had a quiet lively debate, it was in a it and found that it would be compatible with my philosophy and ethics class as I always liked to personality, and I took it from there. have a different opinion and be vocal about my opinions. Consequently, he jokingly suggested that 18 www.thelawmag.com
3) You have gained your L.L.B from Queen Mary, University of London, how did this affect your career and your strategy of work? Queen Mary is very well known for being a strong for example. The university in general was also research university, and I think their focus on very diverse, they taught me how to interact with research really helped me make the transition people from a variety of backgrounds and different from university into the career world because I countries, and this translates very well when already had a strong background in reading large dealing with clients. volumes of material and summarizing it concisely 4) How was it switching from the UK to Egypt? It was a bit unusual for me to start with, things like elsewhere. Now I think that law firms in the country finding information online were more difficult. I did are actually pushing for international structures, not know much about the legal field in the country and this is in part due to the younger generations, and the easiest thing to do in that situation is to so the sector is developing very positively. All in turn to google for answers. At the time in Egypt all I would say that moving to Egypt definitely took however, you would not necessarily find updated some adjustments and I am learning new things and reliable information as easily as you would every day, but at least it is never boring! 5) Maher Milad law firm is the only Egyptian Law firm that succeeded in obtaining the name of Andersen Tax& Legal, how did that affect the work in Maher Milad and on you? For me, I became quite involved quickly with the many of the firms share a lot of similarities. The Andersen Global, so it provided me with a lot transition for our firm was also very positive as it of opportunities to travel and be involved in the allowed us to expand various service lines such selection of other firms across the Middle East as tax and financial advisory services, in addition which in turn lead to my recent appointment on to continuing to provide comprehensive legal the global board of directors. So on a personal services. The Andersen name also had a very level it helped me to be exposed to a lot of different strong reputation globally, which is particularly law firms across different jurisdictions which is useful when targeting multinationals. of course very interesting as it teaches you that www.thelawmag.com 19
6) You have been a partner at one of the top law firms at a young age, what are your future plans regarding your career? I am very interested in technology, particularly the their organization and to define my position on use of artificial intelligence and robotics and the the global board, my job there is to represent the implications these will have on our economies. region of the Middle East so I am hoping to give This will undoubtedly reshape the legal field input and suggestions which will help them build as the businesses become moredependent out the region in a beneficial way. Also, I think that on technology, so that is something that I am I would like to continue to provide training aand very keen to learn more about going forwards. spreading my experiences, to let people know that Again looking at the wider scale of Andersen, you can move quite quickly in a very competitive I would like to continue to be more involved in field even at a young age and even being a woman. 7) What is your message to your team at the Firm? Thank you very much for giving me support confidence in me. I am luckily enough to when I needed it, for believing in me when I work with a truly excellent team, who are first started off. That goes in particular to our all professionals work at the highest level, managing partner Mr. Maher Milad, I would and share the same values of hard work and not have been able to get the exposure that integrity. I got so quickly if it was not for him having 8) What is your message to the young generations of students and graduates? If you are looking into entering the legal also think that it’s very important being organized market to work as a practitioner in law, now is and likable, they are small traits which people the best time to do it as the industry is kind of might not think are important when you are being being restructured, and people are pushing for a lawyer but they actually have a huge effect on a higher level of professionalism. There are a your ability to sit with clients and convince them lot of people depending on our generation to that you are the right match for them. make a big difference. I do believe that we are being taken more seriously so now is the time to make the most out of those opportunities. To be a good lawyer you need to have general information and keep your ear to the ground with related subjects such as economics, finance, business and even politics. It is very important to focus on studies but it is also important to be a rounded person that is well read and well informed on the things that are happening in the world. I 9) Finally, how did you feel when you read our e-mail that you were nominated as one of the rising stars? I was surprised as I did not know that there outside the firm as well, so I am very grateful were people that were following the work that to take part in something like this. Thank you. I was doing. It is honestly very humbling and very nice to know that it is being recognized 20 www.thelawmag.com
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The most influential judge By Noran Abdelbaki An interview with Ahmed Abaza judge at the Egyptian council of state, Deputy Head of external relations and international cooperation at the Arab union of administrative judiciary -1 What was the main motivation behind I took that decision. choosing a career in the legal sector? There is no a certain answer for this question, -2 Being a judge is a very critical position, entering faculty of law Cairo university English what challenges did you face along the way department was my first option when I applied for that you were not expecting and how did university, as I was not really interested in studying you overcome those challenges? engineering or anything related to medical school. My biggest challenge as a judge was gathering I lived in Dubai for almost 12 years and when I information. Unfortunately, our country is not very came back here to study for high school, I met aware of data base and technical analysis. We some of my family relatives who were actually are still struggling at the council of state on how working in the council of state and they convinced to digitalize data; thus it is very difficult especially me to apply for law school. In addition to that I for young judges who just got hired at the council really wanted to take a different path as none of of state on how to get the latest legal precedents. my parents work in the legal sector so I wanted What was only available by the time I entered the to create a different career path for myself. I also council of state was written documented papers remember watching episodes from Boston legal that was written ages ago, I remember that by which is a television series that kind of inspired me time they used to write the legal precedents and to the idea of law in general and Iam very glad that issue them in books and distribute them to judges. Nowadays it is very difficult to go through the same www.thelawmag.com 23
process because judgments are issued in various IELTS exams it was just ( TEPS) Test of English districts and it will be so hard to organize them all proficiency which is equivalent to the English in copied books. So I started searching in libraries exams that are for instance taken regularly at as there were no websites that you can easily log the American university in Cairo and it is merely in and search for certain laws or judgments. But an undergraduate exam. So the main document that the court based it’s facts on considered null now there are plenty of websites that all lawyers and void. Therefore, he was not qualified for the and judges use which is making the process a lot position as he did not satisfy the requirements easier, worth mentioning that the council of state that was needed for the position. I remember that is in the process of issuing its own website which it took me three or four days to take the decision will include all of its historical judgments and recent as it was related to someone who was already ones as well, including its valuable legal opinions hired but in the same time I wanted to apply the at the Fatwa department. rule of law, but I finally took the decision and it was verified by the court. However, when it comes to certain situations it is very important to consult our superiors as they -4 What are the advantages of working as have more experience and knowledge and in an administrative judge? the same time they have been through the same The main advantage is that as a judge or a process, they have faced the same obstacles, so prosecutor you are fully aware of everything getting their advice is very essential to overcome around you more than any other official job. At the certain challenges as a judge. Council of State courts there are various districts and each district is specialized in a specific aspect -3 What legal issues most impassion you for example there are the presidential cabinet as a judge? districts which enlightens you with matters related Well anything related to individuals, for instance, to the government, and other districts that deals I remember a case that was related to someone with private market specifically in administrative who was applying for a governmental position and contracts. Additionally, as a judge you get to meet there were certain requirements and qualifications up with lawyers, Ministers and generally everyone for such position. One of these requirements was inthe field. that the candidate must undertake the TOEFL or the IELTS exam but no certain certified place was -5 You are currently the deputy head of the required or mentioned for the exam. I remember Arab Union of Administrative Judiciary. that the candidate took the exam in Ain Shams What does this union aim for and what did University and the other candidates took the you achieve as being the deputy head of exam in AMIDEAST which is one of few certified the union? places in Egypt for those kinds of exams. Thus, The union was established in 2015 and it is a when he applied to the governmental institution, major step in the Arab world especially for Egypt they rejected his papers on the basis that he did it includes all of the Arab administrative high not take the TOEFL exam from a certified entity, Administrative High Courts to share experiences and accordingly the claimant not entitled for the and to achieve a mutual interaction concerning position. Therefore, he raised a case before legal aspects and issues. We made three the Administrative Courts claiming to review the conferences until now, the latest conference administrative decision upon the refusal for hiring was in October and it was in collaboration with him, on the basis, stating that no certain place was the Venice commission of the council of Europe, mentioned or required to take the exam from and and it was held in Egypt as it was a massive accordingly the decision of the administrative body success for the Arab Nation. The conference was reviewed nevertheless he got hired topic was about voting in elections between right and duty especially when it comes to imposing By that time I was working at the court of appeal governmental sanctions on individuals. I personally and the case came before me, I raised an issue wrote an article concerning this topic called the that the exam itself that the candidate undertook paradox of voting. In addition, we invite judges and was not actually equivalent to the TOEFL or the 24 www.thelawmag.com
scholars from other countries and it is astonishing -7 The new public contracts law no.182 of how they still view us as reference for their country. 2018 has been approved by the Egyptian We genuinely believe that this harmony will serve parliament. What does this new law aim for the government, the legal community and the Arab and what are the substantial differences community as a whole between it and the tender and auctions law no.89 of 1998? -6 You have worked as a corporate lawyer The district that Iam working in is the new urban for a long time, and now you are an residency so we have not really worked with administrative judge, so you have been on this law yet, but by the initial reading of this new both sides. From your point of view how law I think it is a very good initiative as it aims to are they different from each other? facilitate procedures and expand the competition I worked as a lawyer for a few months in a law firm between the competitors as well as reducing and then later on I worked as a corporate lawyer restrictions to increase free investment which I in a bank. Honestly, it was a great experience as highly support. I have learned a lot, especially in banking and When it comes to distinction between both laws finance department. Working as a lawyer taught I find that law no.182 is very well titled and also me that time is valuable more than anything else, I worth mentioning that contract amounts which remember I arrived to court on time and the judge is beyond 2 million pounds shall be overviewed was late for about an hour or more, at that moment by the department of Fatwa at the Council of I promised myself that if I ever became a judge State whereas in comparison to law no.89 it only one day I will never be late to court, which is my indicated contracts amounts that are beyond current rule. I know exactly what is it like to be a 500,000 pounds, although I still think that this lawyer, it is an enormous responsibility, as a lawyer amount is not that high when it comes to the you are representing your clients. So I remember projects we are witnessing nowadays. Overall that day I couldn’t attend some of my meetings that I think it is a great start and we have to always I had after court and I had to send a lot of emails support and encourage new laws. apologizing for not attending so it was a huge chaos. In general, time is valuable as a lawyer and -8 Professor Khalid El Zoghby was a judge as a judge. at the Economic Court and a legal advisor at the Egyptian Exchange (EGX) and he On top of that, lawyers commonly do not pick was a great inspiring role model for a sides the client comes to you and in return, you lot of students. Do you think that every have to work in favor of your client, but as a judge, successful person should take the same it is completely different, your main duty and path in inspiring and motivating others to responsibility is to apply the rule of law. success? Definitely, I truly believe that sharing experience and knowledge is a role of every successful person regardless of their profession. And I myself will be very honored and welcoming for any idea or suggestions that will help others in sharing my experience and knowledge with them, whether in a form of a speech in an event or a conference or workshops for students, helping others gives us a sense of purpose and satisfaction. www.thelawmag.com 25
-9 A lot of students are trying really hard to get failure gives you the courage to continue to learn in a judicial position and most of them believe order to be successful. There are a lot of great role that it is an ultimate goal career; can you give models who failed a multiple of times but in the an advice for students in order to be a strong end they became the best version of themselves candidate for a judicial position? because they simply never give up and they work First of all I would like to tell them that there is no really hard on themselves, I do not want them to such thing as an ultimate goal career, there is a take these words as slogans because as a matter dream and they have to work really hard towards of fact we do have a great examples as young achieving that dream. And I also want them to think entrepreneurs now in Egypt as well as young from a different perspective I want them to start athletes like Mohamed Salah who is now one of first by doing an act for example taking courses the best professional football players in the world. or internships etc. once you start taking the step Lastly, it is very important to work and gain endless opportunities will come along the way knowledge for your own benefit, never work for and by that time they will get inspired and they awards as this will mentally and physically exhaust will be motivated to continue to succeed, and your your passion to work, eventually awards will come magazine is a great example, it was just a dream along the way. and then there were steps taken towards achieving that dream and it›s just a matter of progress. I -10 Who do you look up to as a started as a corporate lawyer, and then later on I professional role model? got hired in the council of state. I do not want them I am where I am because of my parents, but as to think that the judiciary position is an ultimate professionally I would say Judge / Mohamed goal career with immunity; if they want to take this Raslan, he is the vice president of the Council of path they have to think of how they are going to State and the Secretary General at the Arab Union serve themselves and their country, and that it is of Administrative Judiciary, as well as the Head of a matter of enriching themselves with information International Cooperation division and the state and applying the rule of law. Council. He was the one who nominated me to On the other hand, I know many people who work at the Union though I was very young back graduated from faculty of law but they got inspired then, I see that he achieved a lot in such a young by other things and chose a different career path, age, and still has a bright future in front of him, and which is totally fine. I hope that young judges would look up to him the Another advice that I would like to add is that same way . you cannot succeed without failing; learning from 26 www.thelawmag.com
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The Best In-house team,ElSEWEDY ELECTRIC By: The Law Team Q. Before we get deeper, could you please opportunity but I had much higher aspirations after tell us about your start and the history of my graduation. your career? So shortly after, I was lucky to transfer to the A. I graduated from faculty of law, English Ministry of Administrative Development where Department, proudly from Alexandria University, I spent 10 months there as Legal Researcher, ranking as one of the top students during my study. after which I have joined M/s Eldib Advocates, a After graduation I was approached by the Ministry distinguished law firm based in Alexandria, with of Supply and Internal Trading as part of the longstanding expertise in the Maritime Law field. At “Junior Leaders Empowerment” program, through the beginning of my work there I started to review appointing the top 20 graduates in a governmental concession agreements between the companies authority or ministry. This of course was a good and the government and the partnership agreements between the companies. Thereafter, 28 www.thelawmag.com
most of the work was focused at maritime law and I am immensely proud that we are composed a bit of corporate. After three years of being one of about 14000 employees over 96 companies of Eldib & Advocates associates I was offered a worldwide including the lawyers. It is worth new and challenging position from Oracle Egypt, mentioning that I am always keen to always a reputable American company specialized communicate through weekly meetings with in Integrated Cloud Applications and Platform the team to enable all of them to exchange Services for one year then I moved to Alkan CIT their experiences and knowledge as we are a an international company that focused on the multinational company and diversity is its main GSM networks and other solutions related to characteristic. communication which was my first exposure to the international scope like incorporation of companies Q. You were lucky to work at a law firm and in Africa, Gulf region and Asia. in house, why specifically you chose to be in house lawyer? And after three years, in 2010, I finally moved to El Sewedy Electric. As the Legal Counsel who A. At the offset let me tell you that there is isn’t was already there has left only two months after a real difference between the nature of work at a my recruitment, I was left alone in the entire law firm and a diverse company. As on both sides department with big shoes to fill. Despite this, I was you get to experience new things every day. In a adamant to build a very strong legal department at company at El Sewedy Electric that has business the company. Firstly, I started to look at the people on the national and international scope, you working at the company who are law graduates, face legal matter in various forms from different but works in other departments. I found 3 at the countries, in addition some works related to Real company and we started together to learn and Estate, we do cooperate with Waterway, Capital develop ourselves. In the middle of year 2012, Way and also a new university at the New I can proudly say that we managed to lay the Capital. I am honored be a part of the company’s foundation of a successful and capable legal enormous success in being ranked third on the department with a team of 4 lawyers providing revenue and profit distribution in Egypt, and we crucial input and legal coverage to the group. At work tirelessly and relentlessly to be ranked No.1. the end of 2012 I had the honor of being formally appointed as head of the legal department at El Sewedy Electric Group. At present, our legal department now consists of 25 expert lawyers and we are planning to reach 33 lawyers by the end of 2019 to cover the ever expanding the business of the group. Q. Could you please briefly give us a glimpse about how the legal department is being structured? A. Our legal department is divided to three main sectors, the first one is responsible for the distribution, transfer and electricity generation projects’ headed by my colleague Mr. Ahmed Zidan. The second team is the on-shore sector that is headed by Mr. Hani Othman which is divided to in house team, centralized teams that work at the other companies which cooperate with us and the investigation team, and the third one is the abroad sector that is headed by Mrs. Nathalie George in Africa and Europe while Mr. Karim Haroun in the Gulf area and Asia. www.thelawmag.com 29
Q. You have experienced the work in law when it comes to selling or buying the share. In firms and in house, would you advise the addition, our core business is cable and electric young graduates to go directly to an in product manufacturer and we started to develop house or a law firm first? by adding all kinds of cables which includes low voltage, high voltage and medium voltage. A. First, I would like to clarify that El Sewedy Moreover, EL Sewedy Electric has significantly Electric is an exception regarding diversity. The extended its core by establishing companies for majority of the companies offer limited experience electric transmissions which includes overhead and regarding all the branches of law. Consequently, I underground transmissions. On top of that, in 2007 advise all the graduates to go for a law firm at the the company acquired Slovenia’s Iskraemeco, beginning as it is in my point of view is the solid which is one of the world’s most technologically foundation for gaining theoretical and practical advanced producers of metering equipment and legal knowledge. Law firms enable the candidate services. The company’s electric activities are to learn how to read, interpret and practice laws, spread across Ghana, Sudan and Iraq. Most and the exposure to the real world gives immense importantly, the company concluded a consortium experience, far more than what can be achieved agreement with Siemens AG regarding the Beni through books., to move to an in house it is a must Suef power project here in Egypt. in my view to spend from three to five years at a law firm first. The country has been passing through huge economical transitions as for instance Q. Every career path requires certain traits the floatation of the Egyptian pound how to be part of, could you clarify to us the did the company managed to survive traits required in order to have an effective through these economical changes? legal department? A. I believe all the enterprises in Egypt were A. It is of a crucial importance to select the affected, however, through the steady leadership right caliber that would add to the department. and progressive vision of Eng. Ahmed Ahmed In addition to this, before starting anything you Sadek ElSewedy, having diverse operation, should make a detailed analysis regarding what both domestically and overseas, we were able the company needs and might need in the future, to counteract these conditions, as we have and then to develop an efficient system through several projects in progress in different countries. which the department would operate, as a cog in Additionally, we first and foremost, cables the enormous mechanism of the company with all manufacturers, therefore, we export cables of its various departments and complexities. and electric products to Europe, such diversity Q. According to the website on December 25th of 2017 El Sewedy Electric subsidiary signed EGP 477 million DOLLARS contract for the construction of new substation. Can you please give us a brief overview of the current situation of the contract? A. First of all, I would like to clarify that EL Sewedy Electric total revenue is 3.5$ billion per year which is equivalent to EGP 65 billion. Some of our projects are kept confidential as required by the client but the rest are made public and that is because %25 of the company’s shares are listed in the Egyptian Stock Exchange so this leads to the disclosure of the mega projects as this actually affects the price of the share 30 www.thelawmag.com
creates a solid protection. Moreover, our business as a team and we developed a friendship development team are hard workers and they relationship which motivates every member of the are capable of making huge business deals and team to work harder and improve themselves. projects which have led to the group’s massive Obviously this team is part of every success and expansions. accomplishments, as proof of which, ElSewedy Electric Legal Team was ranked as one of the Q. Since you have been working in the best in-house teams in Africa for the year 2018 by legal sector for a long time and obviously Legal 500. you have managed to form a strong legal experience, have you ever thought of Q. Are there certain factors to consider in establishing your own law firm? And what picking a law firm for legal outsourcing? would you like to be specialized in? A. Just to clarify the legal department team are A. Of course I did think about it, but honestly I still very well qualified to manage any kinds of legal think that it is not the right time at the moment to issues but from time to time, we do need a second take such step. But at the end of the day having eye when it comes to certain transactions. The your own business has a special taste of success. factors that are taken into consideration when When it comes to specialization I honestly love it comes to picking a law firm are mainly the diversity and general practice as it increases the legal experience, and the amount of successful amount of achievements in addition to the legal closures that were made by the lawyers who experience and knowledge, besides it creates worked on such transactions. endless challenges. Q. When it comes to Egyptian laws and Q. Are there any future plans to have regulations, do you think that the new projects in the United States of America? investment law had a positive impact on the business deals that were concluded A. The market in the USA is highly competitive, by the legal department, since the new law therefore establishing projects there is extremely includes a lot of incentives and guarantees risky. In addition, corporate taxes are too high to attract investors? which make it not feasible. Africa at the moment is our targeted region, to work in and thrive. A. Well, with no doubt the new investment Therefore, we are mainly focusing on Africa by law no.72 of 2017 guarantees a number of increasing our expansion there, recently we protection for foreign investors to encourage hired a huge business development team and new development in Egypt. Furthermore, it a commercial director and we already have an includes certain incentives, tax exemption and efficient presence in the Gulf. However, we think reduction, but such incentives are conditional. that South America is a better approach for us with All such benefits depend mainly on the amount more opportunities like Cuba, Chile and Argentina. of investment and the type of projects. In other words the incentives that are granted to the Also, we are planning on making representative investors are based on certain conditions by virtue offices all over Africa to increase marketing for El of law that investors should met. Sewedy Electric. Q. Can you please describe the legal team in three words? A. First, they are fast learners which is very important to cope with diversity. Second, they are highly efficient and third they are very cooperative as a team, honestly we are one amily as we spend most of each day togethe www.thelawmag.com 31
Through back: an interview with Adam Shalakany and Mariam Fahmy, the new partners at Shalakany Law Office. Interviewed by: Hoda A.Nafee Earlier this year, we had the chance to interview two of the most dynamic young partners in one of the leading firms in Egypt. We’ve talked to them on how this significant transition was planned and how they perceive it. Q: Being partners at one of the big law firms Q: Changing from senior associates to partners of definitely requires hard work and more time at the course is a huge change, how does that change work, how do you spend your time at the office and affects your responsibilities and your career? how is the work environment? A: Mariam: Of course there is a change of role A: Mariam: When it comes work environment regarding managerial aspects; however, when we and the time we spend at work, one of our main were senior associates we were also responsible objectives is to work as efficiently as possible and at for teams and handled big pro-jects and cases. the same time try to create a healthy environment and eliminate stress as much as possible. As we Adam: I agree with Mariam as nothing really spend a minimum of 8 to 9 hours per day, Shalakany changed. Our work is the same as it was. The only is considered as our second home. That’s why we thing that has changed is administrative work and have to work efficiently and at the same time build accounting work. Also, we have to worry about relations and create second families for ourselves. getting more clients for the firm. Adam: I do agree with Mariam as I feel it is important to create a friendly environment for the team to be able to work efficiently. One of the most important things is to be as one team. We are keen to respect each other and to be one family. 32 www.thelawmag.com
Being partners in one of the biggest law firm in Egypt at this Q: Dr. Khaled El Shalalakny is young age is considered as a huge success and a door of considered as the God Father of hope to young ages, what advice do you give to youth to lawyering in Egypt, how working in achieve that success away from Shalalakny name? the same place with him is useful for you? What did you learn from A: Mariam: my advice for them is to work really hard at a him? young age. Starting early is a very important thing. They do not have to wait until they graduate from university. Always A: Mariam: Unfortunately, I do not ex-pose yourself to different areas of laws and different fields work with Dr. Khaled a lot, however, of laws. Dr. Khaled is in-spiring and a great role model. He also has a passion to Q: The market is getting bigger every day and is being always try and learn new things. competitive with new law offices and firms open every while and then, what the Shalakany strategy to keep on the right Adam: This is a bit hard question track? for me but I will answer it. On the professional level he always taught A: Adam: I think that Egypt is a big country that allows the me to try to work on higher levels existence of big and competitive market not only in the legal and to exert all the effort I can to field, but also in all other fields. The best thing to do is to keep on get the best out of my work. Also, I following our strategy which is quality not quantity. It is better to handle big learnt from him that you do not have cases and reach a good judgment or a settlement rather than ten cases to be always right, but you cannot and losing them. be wrong. It is a bit weird I know, however it is important to try not to Q: Although all the changes that happened in the legal market, be wrong. there is a sector in our com-munity still think that lawyering is only for men-how do reply to this Mariam? A: Mariam: Despite the fact that some people still think that law is for men, I have never faced this since I started my career in 2007. Actually, for the past three to four years all the top students are females and that is why 80 to %90 of the fresh graduates we hire are females. www.thelawmag.com 33
Q: There is always a strategy and standard for accepting new cases or new clients, could you please tell us the cases that Shalakany would never accept? A: Adam: We do not do that many criminal cases even though the financial reward could be high. We also do not do capital punishment crimes and arms- dealing cases. We have re-fused a lot of cases regarding arms-deals despite the high financial reward. Q: Shalakany is famous about its Q: Last but not least as we are sure that both of you still passion to hire fresh graduates and have a lot to offer and to develop the legal community, organising internships, so would could you please give us your message to the team of the you give us a hint about the criteria office and the clients? of recruitment at the office regarding fresh graduates? A: Beside the academic A: For theTeam: Actually whatever we will say would not be qualification, we accept the canthat enough, so all we can say now is that we could not have done it are ready to be a part of this family. without your support and your dedication. As we have mentioned before, we are a family. We always welcome Clients: We would like to thank them for their trust the ones that are ready to be a and their choice of us. We also do promise that we part of this family. As we have will exert all the effort we can to help our clients in all mentioned before, we are a family. the legal matters they face. We always welcome the ones 34 www.thelawmag.com
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Dr .Khaled el-Zoghby Remembering Khaled. On august 24th 2018, we lost a man that we may never replace, Dr. Khaled el-Zoghby. Our board of trustees member, our consultant, and our friend. Those who knew Dr. Khaled will know the emptiness created by his absence, an inspiration for many generations to be lost in a blink of an eye. In the Law, we’ve experienced a lot with Dr. Khaled that we cannot forget and we speak truly when we say that he is irreplaceable. Let us thrive and carry out his legacy. We Miss you Khaled. The Law Editors. www.thelawmag.com 37
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By Mohamed Gameel, Chief Prosecutor at East Cairo District 42 www.thelawmag.com
Here is how it looks like Asit heads towards stability after a rough security. period of uncertainty and political Hence, after almost eight years of discussions and turbulences, Egypt is now trying to be efforts of multiple committees and experts since 2010, an investment appealing market; and realizing that the Egyptian parliament has finally issued the first online security is an important aspect of business Cybercrime law ever adopted. and security, especially in the highly expanding online life and E-commerce, Egypt has taken Amid allegations of human rights violations and the first step towards providing a safer online fears of suppression of freedom of speech, environment. the Egyptian president, ratified the Law no. 175 for the year 2018, on August 14,2018 after Unfortunately, Egyptian internet users have been being approved by the parliament’s Communication vulnerable to all types of cyberattacks due to poor Committee in May, the law is titled “Anti Information security awareness, education programs and Technology Crimes Law”. absence of “privacy and cyber legislation”. The law comes in 45 articles with four main sections. Infact, most Middle East and North African countries, including Egypt, have ranked The first section contains all the relevant definitions high in financial crimes such as fraud, in its first article, the first read of this specific article bribery, corruption, and money laundering. Which can give us a clear idea about the impact that foreign makes the region a suitable environment for legislations had over the Egyptian law. “Financial Cybercrime” [1] For instance, the Egyptian law adopted almost the The 2012 report published by APWG revealed that exact wording of the Budapest convention definition Egypt has ranked in the top three countries for for “service provider”. However, we can also sense the hosting phishing websites. [2] spirit of the newly adopted General Data Protection Regulations “GDPR” of the EU in the way it defined Consequently, that lack of cyber security lead to a “electronic processing”, adopting almost the exact shrinking e-commerce environment, affecting the wording of the GDPR. Egyptian market share of such booming economy. The definition article contained 26 definitions in a Inan interview with the founder of the famous detailed manner in for most of them, sometimes too electronic commerce webpage “Souq.com”, detailed . Al-Sahi said that the number of people using electronic commerce in Egypt is 9.25 million, The article covered definitions for generic terms expected to reach 15 million by next year. allowing for confused interpretation, such as a “Computer”, or “Email”, that the article gave a detailed- However, he added, that less than 7% of the but not necessarily important- definition. persons visiting his site actually perform commercial transactions due to the lack of For example, an “Email” as defined in the article as confidence, apparently due to absence of legal “any means of electronic exchange of messages platforms protecting consumers data from various on a specific address between more than one sorts of assault. natural or legal person through an information network or any other means of electronic connection between Furthermore, privacy of Egyptian citizens has computers or similar devices”. witnessed hard times due to the absence of legal framework protecting them from various types of Such definition confuses the “Email”, as we know with cybercrimes, not to mention threats to national much of other electronic messages people exchange www.thelawmag.com 43
via other electronic means such as internet-based Article 7 tackles websites blocking, detailing the messaging apps like WhatsApp or Facebook authority that has the right to issue such order, Messenger, allowing for a confusion in the which is the competent investigatory authority, application of the law when a definition of email is according to the law in the presence of serious required. evidence that such website is displaying what constitutes a crime according to the law. Therefore, it shall be for the judiciary to accommodate such definitions and adapt it to However, the investigatory authority must refer to serve the purpose of the law regardless for the court to validate such the blocking decision within prevalent use of such terms and to eliminate the 24 hours, and the court shall decide, in not more confusion accompanied with the drafting thereof. than 72 hours, either to validate or invalidate such decision. Responsibilities of service providers, were all mentioned in the second article of the law, it Article 8 in the same section draws the contained a data retention obligation for a period procedural plan for challenging the court decision of 180 days for information and data concerning concerning blocking a website. the users of the service and data of the content of the information system as long as it is “under the Third section, and the most important one, control of the service provider”, in addition to traffic is the one containing the articles incriminating data. certain actions and determining the pertinent punishment. Inaddition, the article puts an obligation of confidentiality and security for all data and Chapter one of this section titled “Assault on the information retained by the service provider and integrity of networks and information technology obligations concerning facilitating the access of systems”, consists of articles 13 to 22 that investigatory authorities to such data with the enumerates ten relevant crimes as follows: proper procedures mentioned in the law, with providing adequate technical means necessary for 1 “Illegal utilization of information and the fulfillment of such obligation. communication services and technologies” Article 3 defines the territorial scope of the law, punishable with a minimum of 3 months in prison which extends to any crime provided for in the law and/or a fine of 10000 to 50000 LE. which is committed by a non-Egyptian citizen on any means of transportation registered in Egypt 2 “Illegal access” to an information system or or where the crime was planned for in it, or was a website or a private account punishable committed by a terrorist group that has Egypt with minimum of a year in prison and/or a fine of as one of its targeted countries; or if the crime 50000 to 100000 LE.punishable with a minimum of is to cause any harm to an Egyptian citizen; or 3 months in prison and/or a fine of 10000 to 50000 the interests of Egypt; or if the culprit was found LE. in Egypt after committing the crime and before extradition. 3 “Exceeding authorized access”: punishable with minimum of 6 months in prison and/or a Article 4 asserts the importance of international cooperation in the field of combating cybercrimes fine of 30000 to 50000 LE and emphasizes the principle of reciprocity. 4 “Illegal interception”: punishable with a Section 2 concerns the procedural rules, minimum of a year in prison and/or a fine of including powers given to investigatory authorities and personnel. 50000 to 250000 LE. 44 www.thelawmag.com
5 “Assault on the integrity of data and new notion of the criminal liability for legal persons. information systems”: punishable with Section 8 talked about consequential sanctions, minimum of 2 years in prison and/or a fine of 100000 while nine tackled attempting one of the crimes in to 250000 LE. the law and conciliation. 6 “Assault on private Emails, websites or Section 4 came in only three articles for final and accounts”: punishable with a minimum of one transitional provisions. month in prison and/or a fine of 50000 to 100000 It is of no doubt that adopting this law in such a LE. crucial period where Egypt is passing through an 7 “Assault on the design of a website”: important era of development shall have a positive punishable with a minimum of 3 months in effect on the economy, boosting trade in the e-commerce and Fin Tech sector. prison and/or a fine of 20000 to 100000 LE. In addition, it shall strengthen the right to privacy and 8 “Assault on governmental information online security on the individual and national level. systems”: this article consists of two crimes; the first is a misdemeanor punishable with a Judges and prosecutors will face many non- minimum of 2 years in prison and/or a fine of 50000 conventional crimes with extraordinary characteristics to 200000 LE, punishing the simple form of assault that requires good training and preparation especially on governmental information system that includes that the law- as we saw in the few examples illegal access and exceeding the authorization to mentioned earlier like the definitions article- has a big access; the other is a felony punishable with prison room for judicial interpretation in most of its provisions, and a fine of 100000 to 500000 LE for illegal paving the way for controversies and debate. access for the purpose of interception or acquiring unauthorized information. 9 “Assault on the integrity of information networks”: punishable with minimum of 6 months in prison and/or a fine of 100000 to 500000 LE, this article also made it a crime if it was committed unintentionally, and made it a felony if committed towards a governmental network. 10 “Acquiring software, equipment, or tools used in committing information technology crimes”: punishable with a minimum of 2 years in prison and/ or a fine of 300000 to 500000 LE Third section of the law contained two articles incriminating the violation to privacy and assault on the Egyptian family values. Sections 4 and 5 came in seven articles and tackled crimes committed by website admins and service providers. Section six talks about the aggravating circumstances, while section seven introduced a www.thelawmag.com 45
By: Maha Abdellatif There have been some rumors that Uber is trying on designated sectors and economy. to get a deal to acquire Careem. According to economists and professional working for ride- Having said that, why would regulators and hailing apps, this merger is a savior for both policy makers decide that such deals may harm companies and it is only a matter of time to the economy and therefore laws are enacted to complete the deal. regulate the market, legal bodies were created to monitor the enforcement of those laws and But, these rumors triggered a warning from the regulations? Egyptian Competition Authority (“ECA”) on 24 th October to both companies considering this kind of From an economic point of view, in a market agreement to be” detrimental to investment”. economy, it is crucial to maintain competition among producers and accurate information in the The immediate question that came up to my mind hands of consumers which result in best prices is why a merger between two major companies in and best quality of goods and services. Since a given sector would be detrimental to investment? producers are always looking for better ways of doing business, sometimes competition makes Generally speaking, the key principle behind them less comfortable fearing to be overrun by a mergers and acquisitions (“M&A”) is that two competitor. This provides a powerful incentive for companies together are more valuable than two producers to seek ways of stopping the competitive separate companies. And companies resort to process. this deal when times are tough whereby strong companies will act to buy other companies to Here come the role of regulations and regulators create a more competitive, cost efficient to counter that incentive by providing a strong company. disincentive to anti-competitive conduct. Moreover, in business literature, M&A is Historically, the legislation of anti-trust had been considered the faster, less expensive and much introduced in USA at the end of the 19th century. less risky mean for companies to grow their By that time, there were several giant businesses business the fact that should have positive impact known as “trusts” who control major sections of 46 www.thelawmag.com
the economy such as: oil, steel and sugar. When * The monitoring of State aid (e.g. the prices get higher and higher and quality is not a prohibition of a State grant designed to keep a priority anymore, government issued and enforced loss-making firm in business even though it has no the so-called “anti-trust” laws aiming to protect prospect of recovery). consumers by promoting competition in the market place. In Europe, the pro-competition tradition was much weaker than in the US. It was US officials, in the The European Commission has the power to aftermath of World War II, who pressured The monitoring of State aid (e.g. the prohibition European governments to accept competition as of a State grant designed to keep a loss-making a fundamental principle of market operation and firm in business even though it has no prospect of competition policy as it guarantor. recovery). European competition policy is possibly unique deal with these matters. In some cases, this in EU policy making in that it developed almost in power is shared with the Member States’ own tandem with national competition policies. competition authorities and law courts (Articles 81 and 82), while in others it lies exclusively with the European competition policy is based on a Commission (merger control, monitoring of State Community* legislative framework essentially aid). For the control of large-scale mergers, the provided by the European Community “EC Treaty” (Articles 81 to 90). The merger regulations Member States considered it necessary to create 2004/139 (known as the «ECMR» were provided a one-stop shop. They appointed the European separately by a Council regulation. Commission to that end. On the basis of this body of law, competition policy Since 1990s, the adoption of a competition law has focuses on four main areas of action. experienced unprecedented growth by different countries especially developing countries. * The elimination of agreements which restrict competition and of abuses of a dominant In Egypt, the Protection of Competition and the position (e.g. price-fixing agreements between Prohibition of Monopolistic Practices Law No. 3 of competitors). 2005 and its amendments in law No. 190 of 2008 and law No. 56 of 2014 are the laws that govern * The control of mergers between firms the prevention of an economic activity to harm the freedom of competition. Like in many other * The liberalization of monopolistic economic developing countries, the Egyptian anti-trust law is sectors (e.g. telecommunications). merely concerned with the conduct or behavior of market participants rather than the structure of the www.thelawmag.com 47
market environment itself or the performance of Notification is now compulsory when the above an industry. It only regulates the production,selling threshold is met. Failure to notify does not lead to and pricing policies of firms, advertising and the cancellation or annulment of the merger/ EWWarrangements between firms such as cartels acquisition since notification takes place after and vertical restraints. the merger or acquisition in question has been implemented. The Law prohibits a list of acts that have negative impact on the economic activity, such as: So, from a legal standpoint, the Competition law adopted in Egypt contains strong provisions, have 1. Agreements among competing persons in the seen effective and determined developments relevant market (Article 6) as well as discussions on areas of potential 2. Vertical agreements (Article 7) development especially areas related to 3. Abuse of Dominant Position (Article 8 ) enforcement mechanisms and coordination between The Law provides an exhaustive list of the acts institutions. that the dominant person is prohibited to do. The meaning of each of these acts is explained in the Yet, to achieve the goal to promote economic Executive Regulations No. 1316 of 2005 to enable efficiency and increase consumer’s welfare, a the Authority to assume its role in examining them. comprehensive competition policy needs to be implemented. While fines were introduced to penalize any violation of the provisions of Articles 7 ,6 or 8, So, from a legal standpoint, the Competition law other provisions provide a more conciliatory adopted in Egypt contains strong provisions, have role to the ECA who may order the defendant seen effective and determined developments to “readjust its position” by ceasing the unlawful as well as discussions on areas of potential conductimmediately or within a specific period of development especially areas related to time. enforcement mechanisms and coordination between institutions. The enforcement proceedings are initiated by the ECA who submit a decision of infringement to the Yet, to achieve the goal to promote economic Public Prosecutor who in turn file a case efficiency and increase consumer’s welfare, a with the Economic Court. Following a court comprehensive competition policy needs to be judgment against the defendant, the defendant implemented. A comprehensive competition policy may file an appeal with the Court of Appeal. The includes in addition to traditional competition law, decision with regard to penalties is a Court other elements that are essential to enable the decision and not a decision of the ECA. business environment to flourish such as liberal trade policy, removing the government regulations The amendments in law No. 190 of 2008 were that limit competition, the reform of inappropriate mainly concerned in increasing certain fines. For monopoly structures especially those created by merger controls, as far as we are concerned, governments, empowering consumers’ moves and any entity whose annual turnover in awareness, intellectual property, licensing foreign the most recent financial statements exceeds investment, contracting out and taxation. EGP100,000,000 shall notify the ECA of any of the following: the acquisition of new assets, property rights, shares, or companies, or in the event of mergers or the formation of new companies, or joint ventures. 48 www.thelawmag.com
The term “buying nationality” could imply some By:Khaled Al Khashab misconception as to an actual purchase of a country to avoid hardships that result from indirect citizenship. However this term ااactually refers supervision of investment (allegedly). to the process of obtaining citizenship through Like many countries, the new 2018 Egyptian law investment or other financial ties to the target amending the law no. 89 of 1960 and law no.26 country. of 1975 allows foreign citizens who have been This system allows for foreigners who resident in the country for the past 5 years who fall financially contribute to one sector in the target within category 4 of the new law (foreigners with country to be integrated into that country. The deposit based residence) to apply for the Egyptian system eventually would offer the individual either citizenship as long as they have a bank deposit of a citizenship or a residence permit. at least 7M EGP. The idea revolves around bringing in investments Before answering a question of who is addressed either directly or indirectly to the target country by this regulation, the fact that this new legislation while allowing the investors to be a part of that is a mean of investment in the growing market of Egypt must be addressed from many aspects. For instance, the amount of money required is equivalent to 307,185£ which is a considerably low amount compared to the minimum of the British tier one investor visa of 2£M and slightly more than the Entrepreneur visa of 50,000£. Other countries, most notably in the EU, offer a higher amount to be invested but not deposited that varies between 100,000 EUR (Moldova) and 2M EUR (Greece). The significance of the Egyptian scheme is that it drops the investment scheme adopted by most of the countries around the globe, such as: Germany, UK, the Bahamas, Canada, Fiji, Australia, etc. but rather adopts a bank deposit approach that makes it easier to qualify for citizenship. Furthermore, the duration required serves the Egyptian economy the best as these deposits increase the banking sector’s capacity. Considering other economies the Egyptian scheme holds better grounds as a 5 year minimum would sustain the banks’ money flow compared to other countries that require 8 years of residence (Germany) or 12 years of uninterrupted residence (Switzerland) Spectacular, no? www.thelawmag.com 49
Founder of the International Legal House By Tamer Abdel Moaty The Real Estate Taxation: Since the issuance and the application or installations that are erected on the roofs of this subject, it became highly or facades of real estate if they are leased or controversial issue for all the Egyptian constructed for benefit or rent and the property society, due to this, we decided to make it clear to everyone regarding its application, allocated for the administration and exploitation rules and exemption from it. of public utilities that are managed in the manner This law has been issued on 23rd of July, of the commitment or the permission to exploit or 2008 while its executive regulation has been the right to usufruct the land of the state owned issued on 3rd of August, 2009. However, the by the occupiers, exploiters or beneficiaries. definition of this law has been changed by the Moreover, it is also applied on buildings built on ministry decree No. 119 of the year 2016. the agricultural land on the condition to remove First: The application of the law: the agriculture land tax. The person obliged to pay the tax is the one State-owned properties sold to that uses, owns or exploits the real estate individuals or legal persons shall be whether it is natural or legal person even if subject to tax from the beginning of the its right base is not registered. The tax shall be applied on an annual basis on the built-up following month to disposition. property regardless of the building material or the purpose for which it is used permanently Second: The exclusion of certain real or non permanent on the land, under it, on estates: water or fully occupied without completion. However, there are certain types of real estate that the law excluded from the application of According to the law, it is considered the tax. For instance, the law has excluded as real estate the following: the state-owned property for public benefit or The lands occupied in exchange for rent private ownership, state-owned property for public benefit or private ownership, proprietary properties that are expropriated for public benefit 50 www.thelawmag.com
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