Common Law
vs
Civil Law
A 5-day intensive course in London - Presented by UK qualified lawyers
"Identical clauses can produce different outcomes in different jurisdictions. Legal culture shapes every negotiation, every contract, and every dispute, whether you realise it or not."
۞ SRA & Dubai GLAD accredited ۞ Taught by UK-qualified solicitors ۞ 20+ years delivering legal training
EMG Associates (UK) Limited
Where Knowledge Becomes Confidence
- ABOUT THE PROGRAMME
Drafting with Precision and Commercial Confidence
This highly practical five-day programme examines the real commercial consequences of operating across legal systems. Rather than focusing on legal history, the course explores how common law and civil law principles shape contracts, negotiations, risk allocation, enforcement, and dispute strategy in international business.
Participants will analyse how identical clauses can produce different outcomes in different jurisdictions, how legal culture influences negotiation behaviour, and how cross-border transactions must be structured to minimise uncertainty.
Precedent vs codification —
different rules of judicial reasoning create unpredictable outcomes if misunderstood.
Good faith —
civil law imposes it by default; common law does not. This changes everything from pre-contractual negotiations to termination rights.
Remedies —
specific performance, damages caps, and penalty clauses work very differently. Getting this wrong is costly.
- WHO SHOULD ATTEND
International Lawyers and Commercial Professionals - Examining the real commercial consequences of operating across legal systems.
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International Lawyers working across jurisdictions
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In-House Counsel in multinational organisations
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Commercial Professionals in cross-border roles
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Contract Managers on international projects
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Legal professionals from civil law countries advising on common law transactions
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Dispute resolution and arbitration practitioners
- THE SHIFT
Where you are now → Where this programme takes you
01 Distinguish clearly between common law and civil law principles and understand their practical commercial implications.
02 Identify how legal culture affects contract interpretation and negotiation, including the impact of good faith obligations and drafting style differences.
03 Assess how remedies and liability differ across systems, from damages calculations to the default availability of specific performance.
04 Evaluate cross-border legal risk in international transactions, including corporate governance, insolvency exposure, and director liability.
05 Structure agreements to minimise uncertainty and enforceability issues when parties operate from different legal traditions.
06 Develop informed dispute strategies in mixed legal environments, using arbitration as a neutral bridge between systems.
- THE PROGRAMME
Five days. Five layers of practice.
Each day builds on the last — foundations to strategy, with case-based practical work every day.
DAY 01 Legal Systems and Commercial Reality
Focus: Understanding how legal culture shapes commercial outcomes and risk.
DAY 02 Contract Formation and Interpretation
Focus: Identifying how contractual clauses operate differently across legal systems.
DAY 03 Remedies, Liability, and Risk Allocation
Focus: Comparing damages, liability exposure, and enforceability in cross-border disputes.
DAY 04 Corporate Governance and Financial Distress
Focus: Managing director liability, shareholder rights, and restructuring risk across systems.
DAY 05 Dispute Strategy and Enforcement
Focus: Designing effective dispute strategies in mixed common law and civil law environments.
- WHAT THE PAST DELEGATES SAY
Results that speak for themselves
"Within a week of the programme, I renegotiated a limitation clause in a cross-border supply contract. I would not have caught the issue before."
Senior Associate · International law firm, Dubai
"The programme gave me a practical framework I still use for every English law transaction. Elahe makes complex concepts genuinely clear."
Partner · Commercial law firm, Amman
"For the first time, I understood why English courts ruled the way they did — not just what the rule was. That changed how I advise clients entirely."
In-house Counsel · Multinational corporation, Riyadh
"I came expecting theory. I left with a restructured approach to how I handle dispute clauses and IP assignments. Immediately applicable."
Legal Director · Energy sector, Abu Dhabi
20+ CPD 2 100%
Years of legal training SRA accredited Regulatory bodies Case-based learning
- YOUR PRESENTER
Elahe Ghazinoori — the person who built this programme around the gaps she saw lawyers actually face
Non-Practising Solicitor. Founder and Principal Presenter at EMG Associates. Over 20 years spent in professional legal training — not lecturing from textbooks, but working directly with civil law and common law lawyers on real transactions and disputes.
She's watched smart, experienced lawyers get tripped up by English law assumptions they didn't know they were making. This programme exists because those gaps are predictable — and fixable.
UK-qualified Solicitor
SRA Accredited Provider
Dubai GLAD Accredited
20+ Years in Legal Training
- THE DETAILS
Everything you need to know
DATES
28 Sep – 2 Oct 2026
SCHEDULE
Mon – Fri, 09:30 – 14:30
FORMAT
In-person
VENUE
The Welbeck Hotel, 57-59 Welbeck St, W1G 9BL, London, UK
LANGUAGE
English
CPD
SRA & Dubai GLAD accredited
FEE
£4500
INCLUDES
All course materials & resources
Places are intentionally limited to keep the learning personalised and the group engaged. Once filled, registration closes — no waitlist, no recordings. If this is relevant to your practice, don't let the timing decide for you.