EXPERTISE
Gorvinder Pannu is a Partner in our GCC employment practice, based in Muscat. She is an experienced employment lawyer with more than 20 years of practice, including 15 years in the GCC. Gorvinder specialises in contentious and non-contentious employment matters in Oman, UAE, and Qatar. She has also advised on employment issues relating to employment in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan, Lebanon, and Egypt.
Gorvinder regularly advises multinational and local companies across all sectors, in particular oil and gas, power and water, transportation, TMT, education, and financial institutions. Her experience includes advising on the employment implications of organisational change, mergers and acquisitions, grievances, disciplinary matters and termination of employment, conducting settlement negotiations and drafting settlement agreements, drafting senior executive employment contracts, NDAs, secondments and consultancy agreements, as well as managing employment litigation.
Gorvinder also advises on union legislation and industrial action and advised clients during Oman's 2011 Arab Spring and the 2021 Sohar protests.
Prior to joining Addleshaw Goddard, Gorvinder has practiced in a leading international law firm in Muscat and as in-house counsel in London.
- Experience
Gorvinder's recent experience includes:
- advising employers on legislative Covid-19 restrictions in the work place, health and safety measures, alterations to work rotation cycles, drafting variations to contract terms and redundancies;
- advising Chinese State Grid on the employment aspects of its circa OMR 1 billion acquisition of 49% of the share capital of Oman Electricity Transmission Company, a part of the partial privatisation of the electricity sector in Oman;
- advising Raysut Cement Company SAOG on the employment aspects of it US$ 60 million acquisition of Sohar Cement Factory LLC;
- advising Weatherford Drilling International on the employment transfer aspects relating to the US$ 6 million disposal of its oil field drilling business in Oman to Shaleem Petroleum Company SAOC;
- advising the board of a major bank on the recruitment of the chief executive officer, dealing with external regulatory approvals for the appointment and drafting suite of employment documents;
- defending an international oil drilling services company in multiple arbitrary dismissal claims from employees made redundant following expiry of rig contracts.
- Testimonials
Gorvinder Pannu is well regarded for her practice in employment law, both within Oman and across the region. She is experienced in representing multinational clients in labour claims, with skill advising on the employment aspects of transactions. Clients say: "Her advice and ongoing support have been completely fantastic. She's been able and excellent."
Chambers Global 2021
Quoted in as receiving "enthusiastic praise from clients for her concise and articulate advice," clients also note "she is responsive and always ensures that everyone is up to speed as events unfold."
Chambers Global
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You can contact Gorvinder in our GCC offices:
- +971 4350 6437 (Dubai)
- +968 2495 0705 (Oman)
- +974 4019 0300 (Qatar)
