Dheena Hussain

Barrister-at-Law

Legal Practice

Dheena has extensive experience in the areas of banking and finance, hospitality, capital markets and telecommunications during her practice spanning 23 years. She is frequently recognized by colleagues and legal directories alike as a pre-eminent practitioner with a distinguished track record, acting for telecom companies, development banks, international hotel owners and operators, to name a few.

Dheena has acted as lead counsel on several major commercial transactions in the Maldives, including the initial public offering by Ooredoo Maldives Plc on the Maldives Stock Exchange and establishment of the debut US$ 1 billion Islamic finance sukuk program by the Government of the Republic of Maldives.

Dheena’s notable clients include:

  • Ooredoo Maldives Plc;
  • Centara Hotels & Resorts;
  • Seaside Hotels GmbH;
  • RIU Hotels & Resorts;
  • Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector;
  • International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation.

Awards and recognition

Dheena has been ranked by Asialaw as a "Distinguished Practitioner" and ranked by Chambers and Partners as a top tier Lawyer in the Maldives.

Education and background

Apart from her private practice work, Dheena has served as a member of the Law Commission of the Maldives and has also been a lecturer in criminal law at the Faculty of Sharia and Law of the Maldives College of Higher Education.

Her assignments with the Government of Maldives included postings with the Ministry of Defence and National Security and the Maldives Police Service.

She has also worked for the Special Majlis (Constitutional Assembly) as a member of the Drafting Panel which drafted the Constitution of the Maldives which was enacted in 2008.

She presently serves as a member of the Business Council established by the President’s Office of Maldives.

Dheena graduated in Law from the University of Birmingham in 1996 and was called to the Bar by Lincoln’s Inn in 1997. She also holds a Master’s degree in Banking and Finance Law from the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London.

She is an associate member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators.

Dheena is licensed to appear before all the courts in the Republic of Maldives.