Hamad Bin Khalifa University’s (HBKU) commitment to fulfilling Qatar Foundation’s vision of unlocking human potential requires teaching and learning opportunities that encourage inquiry and discovery. In doing so, the university consistently attracts intellectually curious candidates that see opportunities to not only expand their own knowledge and experience, but also that of their fellow professionals. These include College of Law alumnus Ahmed Al-Ahmed, whose collaboration with his former mentor opened the world to Qatar’s approach to contract law. 

While studying at the United Kingdom’s University of Bradford, Ahmed gradually realized that he was more interested in law than engineering. Even though it was too late to change academic programs, he nevertheless saw an opportunity to customize his final-year dissertation to reflect both disciplines. Doing so introduced Ahmed to the common law system of England and Wales and its applicability to cases of employment discrimination in the workplace. 

Upon completing his studies in the UK, Ahmed took a position with ExxonMobil before joining Qatar Petroleum for the Sale of Petroleum Products (“QPSPP”) as a senior marketer. In this role, he travelled extensively throughout Asia to negotiate sale and purchase agreements for crude oil and other by-products. He also worked closely with QPSPP’s designated legal counsel to help draft new contract provisions, prepare legal notices for breaches of contractual obligations, and assessed the risk of agreeing contracts with potential customers. 

Ahmed nevertheless remained thirsty for academic knowledge, so much so that when HBKU partnered with Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law to deliver the Middle East and North Africa’s (MENA) first Juris Doctor (JD) degree, he knew he had to apply. Upon joining the JD program in Fall 2016 he was immediately impressed by the College of Law’s use of the Socratic method to promote critical thinking in classroom discussions. This was complemented by the active encouragement of students to act like lawyers and sharpen their problem-solving skills.

As part of his constitutional law class, Ahmed assumed the role of a lawmaker tasked with drafting a constitution from scratch. This necessitated the development of a government’s executive, legislative, and judicial powers and ensuring that ‘checks and balances’ were in place for each institution. Ahmed was also required to draft a bill of rights that protected citizens through times of war and peace, an exercise which exposed him to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and other international law instruments. The practical aspect of this project made for a memorable experience that he will always cherish.

Ahmed also appreciated the College of Law’s commitment to keeping the JD’s class size small, an environment which guaranteed high-quality interactions between faculty members and students. After graduating, Ahmed stayed in close touch with Professor Ilias Bantekas with whom he regularly discussed notable gaps in English legal literature and Qatari law resources. This prompted the research, writing, and eventual publishing of Contract Law of Qatar (Cambridge University Press 2023), the only English language monograph on the contract law of any Gulf state. Thanks to the support of HBKU, the book is available to the public for free via Cambridge University’s Open Access platform. Following publication, Ahmed also had the opportunity to co-teach contract law to first-year JD students.

After completing his JD studies, Ahmed had a short tenure as a legal counsel with Qatar Energy, where he primarily focused on upstream crude oil projects in Africa. Besides working on contract issues, he also provided advice and consultation covering mergers and acquisitions, including initial opportunity screening and due diligence. Ahmed also completed his legal training as a prerequisite for admission to the Qatar Bar with Al-Ansari & Associates, a prestigious local law firm with an international reach. He focused on litigation before Qatari courts in order to complement previously acquired legal knowledge and skills. There were also opportunities to represent high profile clients on a range of complex corporate and commercial cases. 

Ahmed was recently admitted to the Qatar Bar after taking his oath at the Ministry of Justice, an achievement that marks a milestone in his legal career. As a licensed lawyer, he plans to set up his own legal practice, in which he will continue to deploy knowledge acquired over the course of his career and studies.

Like so many of HBKU’s alumni community, Ahmed is more than happy to pass on advice to anyone interested in pursuing studies with the university. He wants everyone to know that HBKU provides all its students with a high-quality education and skills for life. It is then up to them to harvest the fruits of their hard work and build meaningful careers. And when it comes to studying in the College of Law, the sky really is the limit!