From AI in legal to deep dives into ESG, tax and competition reform, the 2025 Abu Dhabi In-House Community Congress gathered over hundred counsel and business leaders to exchange hard-won insight and preview the forces that will shape Abu Dhabi legal landscape in 2026. Abu Dhabi welcomed more than hundred in-house counsel and compliance leaders on 29 April for the 2025 Abu Dhabi In House Community Congress at the Rosewood on Al Maryah Island. IHC publisher, Rahul Prakash opened the day with a reflection on the growth of the Community in the Gulf. The first substantive session, AI and the In House Legal Team, paired legal engineer Ali Chaudhry of Simmons & Simmons with Ali Haidar of Microsoft UAE, Bilal Syed of Thomson Reuters and Core42 general counsel Roopal Jobanputra. Moderator Sadiq Jafar, Managing Partner of Hadef & Partners steered debate on contract analytics, vendor selection and the emerging federal framework for artificial intelligence. Elio Nassar from Thomson Reuters then delivered a concise spotlight on new metrics for demonstrating departmental value before delegates broke for coffee. Updates on dispute resolution followed. Partners Mohamed Eissa and Omar Al Heloo of Hadef & Partners analysed recent amendments to the Civil Procedure Code and shared practical tips for early case assessment. Attention then turned to tax – an important topic for legal counsel in UAE. Patryk Karczewski of AMERELLER outlined gaps in corporate tax and VAT interpretation and explained current practice inside the Federal Tax Authority. Vishal Gandhi, managing partner of Gandhi & Associates, closed the morning with a brisk review of Indian legal reforms affecting Gulf investors. Lunch provided a welcome pause and networking opportunity before...