About Me
Arwa Alalim/ Ruttink is the founding partner of Alalim Legal B.V., established in the Netherlands in 2009. Dual-qualified in the Netherlands and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, she has over 20 years of experience advising on complex, cross-border legal matters, with a focus on corporate law, international arbitration, and dispute resolution.
Arwa’s practice spans multi-jurisdictional litigation and arbitration involving construction, infrastructure, and industrial projects. She has acted both for and against a wide range of clients, including municipalities, embassies, international organizations, local and national government bodies, private investors (including investment banks), as well as companies in the construction and oil & gas sectors.
She regularly advises on the structuring, negotiation, and legal supervision of joint ventures and turn-key projects across Europe and the Middle East. Her experience also includes company formation and branch setup in Europe and GCC countries, as well as navigating complex employment relationships across jurisdictions.
In addition to her advisory work, she is appointed as arbitrator in proceedings under ICC and SCCA Rules.
- Seminar for Advanced Studies in Public and Private International Law for Practitioners (Including: Les immunités en droit international public et privé, Diplomatic and State Immunities) – The Hague Academy of International Law, the Netherlands (2013)
- Structuring Petroleum Industry Transactions at Centre for Energy Petroleum and Mineral Law and Policy – Dundee, Scotland (2008)
- Comparative Commercial Maritime Law (Including: a 3 month stay in Tampa, Florida, USA to visit the ports, Maritime law firms and courts) – Leiden University, the Netherlands (2004).
- Postgraduate Diploma in Law course – BPP Law School, London, United Kingdom (2004)
- BA and Master of Laws in Dutch Civil Law – Leiden University, the Netherlands (2002)
- Advised multinational engineering and construction firms in the transport and infrastructure sector
- Represented financial institutions in cross-border commercial matters
- Counsel to government agencies on public-private partnerships
- Legal advisor to several embassies and international diplomatic missions
- Saudi Bar Association (since 2022)
- Dutch Bar Association / Nederlandse Orde van Advocaten – NOvA (since 2005)
- Netherlands Arbitration Institute (NAI) (since 2009)
- Dutch Association for Procedural Law (NVvP) (since 2012)
- Royal Dutch Association for International Law (since 2009)
- International Law Association (ILA) (since 2012)
- International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) (since 2012)
- International Bar Association (IBA) (since 2007)
- English - Native Proficiency
- Arabic - Native Proficiency
- Dutch - Native Proficiency
- French - Conversational Proficiency