LATHAM & WATKINS

Riyadh Office Further Strengthens Firm’s Transactional Capability in the Gulf Region

Riyadh, April 6, 2010… Latham & Watkins LLP1 is pleased to announce the expansion of its Middle East practice through its association with the Law Office of Mohammed Al-Sheikh in Riyadh. Since Latham’s 2008 launch in the Middle East with three offices in Doha, Abu Dhabi and Dubai, the firm has grown to more than 50 attorneys in the region and has represented some of the most active strategic and financial clients in the Gulf Region. Latham’s presence in Saudi Arabia strongly enhances the firm’s Middle East practice.

Latham & Watkins has developed a broad US and English law capability in the region with depth in a number of corporate and finance practices including M&A, private equity, fund formation, project finance, capital markets, restructuring, banking and leveraged finance. A prominent commercial practitioner with wide-ranging expertise, Al-Sheikh also brings extensive experience structuring and documenting Islamic finance transactions throughout the Gulf Region and elsewhere in the world. His arrival adds further depth to the firm’s existing capabilities in this increasingly important practice area.

“The Middle East is one of the most dynamic regions in the world economy and we remain committed to developing our presence in the region as a key focus of our global growth strategy. We expect to see continued inbound and outbound activity that demands sophisticated legal counsel and our presence in Riyadh will significantly bolster our regional capability,” said Robert M. Dell, Chairman and Managing Partner of Latham & Watkins. “We are delighted to establish a presence in Saudi Arabia with partners Mohammed Al-Sheikh and Christopher Langdon. Their stature in the market, knowledge across numerous industries and experience are a perfect fit for our growth strategy.”

Al-Sheikh and Langdon have extensive experience representing sovereign wealth funds, banks and other businesses located or operating in Saudi Arabia and the Gulf Region. Al-Sheikh’s practice focuses on M&A, capital markets, project finance, restructuring, banking and general finance with experience across a number of sectors including energy, infrastructure, telecommunications, technology, real estate and financial services. Langdon’s practice focuses on project finance and development, joint ventures, banking and financial restructuring, with expertise across various sectors including energy, metals and mining, and infrastructure; and he has acted for sponsors, banks, funds and international financial institutions. In addition, Latham associate Salman Al-Sudairi has relocated to the Riyadh office from the firm’s New York office. Al-Sudairi’s practice focuses on banking and project finance, and he has represented lenders and borrowers in sophisticated lending transactions, project financings and energy and other international commercial transactions.

“In a relatively short time, Latham & Watkins has established a strong and growing reputation in the Middle East and Chris and I look forward to working with our new colleagues to further develop the practice. The firm’s depth and breadth of capability in the Middle East and globally, coupled with its entrepreneurial culture, position it competitively to respond to the growing number of complex in-region and cross-border projects,” said Al-Sheikh.

About Latham & Watkins

Latham & Watkins is a global law firm with approximately 2,000 attorneys in 30 offices, including Abu Dhabi, Barcelona, Beijing, Brussels, Chicago, Doha, Dubai, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Hong Kong, Houston, London, Los Angeles, Madrid, Milan, Moscow, Munich, New Jersey, New York, Orange County, Paris, Riyadh, Rome, San Diego, San Francisco, Shanghai, Silicon Valley, Singapore, Tokyo and Washington, D.C. For more information on Latham & Watkins, please visit the Web site at www.lw.com.

Notes to Editor

1 Latham & Watkins operates as a limited liability partnership worldwide with affiliated limited liability partnerships conducting the practice in the United Kingdom, France and Italy and affiliated partnerships conducting the practice in Hong Kong, Japan and Singapore. Latham & Watkins practices in Saudi Arabia in association with the Law Office of Mohammed Al-Sheikh.

Contacts

Robert M. Dell, Chairman and Managing Partner, +1.415.395.8050

Christoph Schlüter

Public Relations Manager

LATHAM & WATKINS LLP

Reuterweg 20

60323 Frankfurt am Main

Germany

Direct Dial: +49.69.6062.6520

Fax: +49.69.6062.6700

Email: christoph.schlueter@lw.com

www.lw.com