Family  businesses are a cornerstone of economic and social life across the MENA  region. Their strength often comes from shared values, trust and long-term vision  but the overlap between family relationships, ownership and  management can also make disagreement especially complex.  

The Family Business Mediation Committee is a dedicated platform for professionals committed to helping family enterprises prevent, manage and resolve disputes through structured, confidential and non-adversarial processes. It brings together mediation expertise with an understanding of family governance, succession, ownership, cross-border structures and the realities of multi-generational business.

The Committee promotes mediation not only as a response to conflict, but as a practical tool for protecting relationships, improving decision-making and supporting continuity across generations.

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Our Vision

To support resilient family businesses in the UAE and wider MENA region by embedding dialogue, trust and professional mediation into the way families address complex business and succession matters.

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What We Do

·      Promote mediation as an effective process for addressing disagreements between family members, shareholders, branches of a family, and generations before conflict damages the business or relationships.

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·     Explore how mediation can support family charters, family councils, shareholder arrangements, decision-making structures and clearer communication between family and management.

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·    Develop practical approaches to succession planning, leadership transition, ownership changes and the expectations of next-generation family members.

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·    Consider the cultural, legal and commercial dimensions of family businesses operating across jurisdictions, particularly where assets, family members or business interests span multiple countries.

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·    Create opportunities for round tables, webinars, case discussions, publications and collaboration between mediators, lawyers, family business advisers, governance specialists, financial experts and academics.

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