Sterling Stamp is a multijurisdictional law firm based in London. The genesis of our practice areas comes from the expertise of the firm’s partners, who have over a decade’s experience in their respective fields.
Throughout the course of their careers, our team have lived, studied and worked in Africa, the Middle East, Asia and Europe. As such, we have intimate knowledge of the markets legal systems we cover in those locations.
Real Estate and Construction
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Regulatory and compliance
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Litigation
and ADR
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Private client
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Founder and Principal Solicitor
Ihsane is the Founder and Principal Solicitor of Sterling Stamp.
She is a qualified lawyer in England & Wales, having obtained her LPC in 2007 from the College of Law with distinction. She holds a Master’s Degree in Law with distinction from UCL in Belgium and a Law Degree from Caddi Ayadd University with great distinction.
In 2018, Ihsane was shortlisted for the Law Society’s prestigious Excellence Award, the highest accolade for lawyers in England and Wales in the Woman Lawyer of the Year category.
Prior to establishing Sterling Stamp, Ihsane practiced law in different jurisdictions across North Africa, France, Belgium and the Middle East. In her last assignment as Legal Director at the Qatar Financial Centre Authority (QFCA), she led the QFCA’s Legal Department. During her tenure at the QFCA, Ihsane headed the legislative drafting department and produced the entire suite of QFC legislation. She represented the QFC in a number of high profile domestic and international litigation and arbitration cases.
She also assisted the state of Qatar in various legislative matters including the creation of a PPP legislative framework and a mega islamic bank.
The Law Society describes her “as passionate, relational, concerned, ethical, caring advocate for client’s, values centred, utmost professional, sees the big picture, empowers others, solid facilitator, multicultural, polyglot with strong charisma and presence”.
Partner & Director of Legal Engineering
Hamza joined Sterling Stamp as a partner in March 2020. His academic and professional backgrounds are truly exceptional.
Hamza obtained his LLM in construction law and arbitration from Robert Gordon University, and his GDL and LLM LPC from BPP university, with commendation and distinction, respectively.
Before converting to law, Hamza attended the most prestigious engineering ‘Grandes Ecoles’ in Paris where he obtained a master of engineering from ESTP Paris and a master in project management from Ecole Centrale Paris.
Since 2008, he has been responsible for civil, construction and mechanical engineering projects in France, Vietnam, Qatar and Eritrea. His experience encompasses the entire project lifecycle, from early feasibility studies to operation and maintenance. His most recent assignment in Qatar saw him manage an engineering department of 52 architects and engineers, for the delivery of Qatar’s first rail network, with over 100 stations and a budget of $33B.
In 2017, Hamza created and implemented a procurement strategy that saved more than $2B on the railway architectural works which earned him the highest accolade from Qatar Railways Company “The exceptional performance award”.
Hamza is a sharp negotiator, approachable, solution oriented, with mathematical precision and strong attention to detail.
Paralegal
Seth joined Sterling Stamp as a Paralegal in January 2020, he holds a BSc from the University of Liverpool. Seth supports the partners in their respective practice areas and is responsible for day to day administration and client care at Sterling Stamp.
Prior to joining Sterling Stamp, Seth had a successful career in small to medium size and start-up financial service institutions in London, providing a range of services including business development, client on-boarding and compliance.
I went through an extremely difficult litigation with my business partners, and spoke to a number of legal firms. Ihsane, who was shortlisted for England Woman Lawyer of the year, was recommended to me. My initial contact was Seth whose professionalism, transparency, and friendliness gave me confidence. Then, when I spoke to Ihsane, she quickly grasped the very complex circumstances of my situation and got me straight away. She meticulously went through a large amount of evidence and turned what I was thinking but unable to articulate and express into an outstanding written format. I was incredibly impressed that Ihsane was able to see aspects of my case that I was blind to, and that no one else suggested to me. Her hard working and tactically astute team worked tirelessly to ensure I had the opportunity for the best outcome possible, while constantly giving me reassurance.
Not only is work and outcome excellent but they are a pleasure to deal with. Few sentences seem inadequate to express my appreciation for your effort on my behalf. You stood up for me, and I am truly grateful for helping me to move on.
Through their thorough and focused service with a personal touch, both Ihsane Elidrissi and Hamza Sekkar ensured that the experience was as painless as possible.
They made sure to take the time to get us comfortable in navigating some of the more challenging aspects of the process, and fought hard on our behalf to protect our interests for the long term.
A pleasure to work with, and we look forward to continuing the relationship as our business grows.