Rania Tadros

Managing Partner of Stephenson Harwood Dubai/ President at WISTA UAE

Speaker

Rania is the Managing Partner of Stephenson Harwood's Dubai office and Global Head of Maritime and Offshore. She is a renowned maritime, trade and offshore lawyer with over two decades of experience servicing clients operating in these industries with a particular focus on resolving disputes and advising on complex and high value commercial matters.

Rania has spent over a decade in senior management positions in the UAE, and previously served as the Dubai office Managing Partner at another global maritime law firm, prior to joining Stephenson Harwood.

Rania frequently represents clients in complex and multi-jurisdictional disputes across both wet and dry shipping matters. Her expertise spans a wide range of issues, including those arising from charterparties, bills of lading, shipbuilding contracts, sale and purchase agreements, contracts of affreightment, and other key maritime contracts. She has acted in a wide range of arbitrations conducted pursuant to the LMAA, SCMA, DIAC, LCIA, ICC, as well as the now defunct DIFC-LCIA, rules. In addition, she has litigation experience before the English High Court and the UAE Courts, including the DIFC Courts. Most recently, she sat at sole arbitrator in DIAC proceedings. She also has substantial experience managing cases arising from major incidents such as pollution, vessel collisions, fires, allisions and groundings.

Rania also offers significant expertise on the non-contentious side, regularly advising clients on their commercial contracts and large-scale maritime projects. Her experience in litigation, combined with her in-depth industry knowledge, enables her to offer proactive and commercially practical advice when negotiating and drafting contracts. Rania’s work for her clients is extensive, leading teams in developing comprehensive drydocking and fleet repair contracts, as well as providing urgent reviews of commercial charterparties.

Rania is the President of the UAE branch of the Women in Shipping and Trading Association ("WISTA UAE"), an international organisation serving as an advocate for women's advancement within the maritime, trading and logistics sectors. She also serves on the committee of the International Congress for Maritime Arbitrators ("ICMA"), a global platform for advancing and discussing maritime arbitration practices and issues.

Rania is widely recognised as one of the leading maritime lawyers in the Middle East, a reputation reflected in the numerous accolades she has received. She is the only lawyer featured in the 'Hall of Fame' category for Shipping in the UAE within The Legal 500 EMEA Guide 2025 and is ranked in 'Band One' ranking in the Chambers and Partners Global Guide 2025 for Shipping: Dispute Resolution in the UAE. Furthermore, Rania was awarded 'Diversity & Inclusion Champion of the Year' at the Thomson Reuters Asian Legal Business Middle East Awards 2023, as a result of her promoting diversity and inclusion, through various initiatives both within the legal and maritime communities. For two consecutive years, she has received an 'Honourable Mention' for 'Law Firm Leader of the Year' at the LexisNexis Women in Law Awards.