Diversity drew Sarah to our Dubai office to build her career

Sarah Haddad, Head of Rule of Law Business in MENA, based in Dubai, is passionate about gender equality and supporting LexisNexis’ mission of advancing the rule of law around the world. She joined LexisNexis as an intern in 2015 after studying law at the Sorbonne in France. Her work is making an impact on women lawyers around the world.

Career advancement in a diverse environment

Sarah didn’t expect her career to go in the direction it has, but she found her area of interest.

“At LexisNexis, I discovered a whole new world around the rule of law, which I absolutely loved,” she says. “I grew in my role as a person and as a professional within the company. LexisNexis really allowed me to find my interest and grow within those spaces.”

In addition to connecting to LexisNexis’ mission, Sarah, who is half French and half Moroccan, appreciates the diversity within the Dubai office and understands that diverse people and ideas strengthen our business.

“In the Dubai office, we have more than 20 different nationalities and that's really enriching because we all come with different perspectives and different ideas,” she says. “Diversity is very important for the business to grow.”

A global exchange of ideas

Sarah reflects on the important work she has done around gender equality and empowering women. With the support of her leaders, she had the opportunity to lead her own projects that supported, enriched, and connected women lawyers.

One of her proudest accomplishments was helping to organize the Women Lawyers Delegation—a group of women across Gulf countries, including United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, Bahrain—who traveled as a cohort outside of their region to the United Kingdom, France, and the United States. The goal? To exchange ideas and compare best practices about the legal system with different thought leaders.

“We arranged meetings with different institutions and governmental entities, including a congresswoman and women lawyers working in international law firms,” says Sarah. “It was a very enriching dialogue between the two groups—women from the Gulf countries and women from the United States—to see the similarities in their jobs and experiences, but also the differences between them. The richness of those conversations were just amazing.”

A book to highlight accomplishments and inspire others

Sarah is continuing her work around women’s empowerment by writing an upcoming book, Women in Law in the Arab World, to be published by LexisNexis. The book features profiles of various Arab women in the legal field, including magistrates, in-house lawyers, and private practice lawyers.

“The idea is for them to share their insights, backgrounds, and the obstacles they have overcome,” says Sarah. “We really want this book to inspire other women and to showcase these strong women who have accomplished so much, including many who are pioneers in their field.”

Sarah expresses her gratitude for the ability to work on these meaningful and enriching projects.

“I'm very grateful that the company has allowed us to develop these ideas,” she says. “I feel supported as a woman and as a professional.”

Congratulations to Sarah, and thank you for your inspiring work!