Jakob Kisser is the managing partner of the UAE office of STROHAL LEGAL. He is a business focused lawyer advising commercial and private clients on M and A projects, corporate matters, and investments in the UAE. He brings practical business insight from serving on the boards of several private foundations and corporations and currently acts as Deputy Chairman of the Austrian Business Council in the UAE.

Jakob studied law in Austria and the Netherlands and holds a Master of Law degree (Mag. iur.) from the University of Vienna. He practiced business law for 20 years at leading international firms in Austria, including Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and Schoenherr, and was admitted to the Austrian bar from 2009 to 2020.

He worked on major M&A transactions in the UAE and Austria, such as the divestment of four retail banks by the Volksbanken group, the restructuring of Nortel Networks, and private equity investments in Themis Bioscience. As Knowledge Director and Compliance Director at Schoenherr, he helped modernize firm wide structures by introducing a compliance management system, a knowledge management department, and the junior academy.

Jakob has authored numerous academic publications, including LexisNexis handbooks on Start ups and Crowdfunding, Form Requirements and Legalization, and Letters of Comfort. He regularly speaks at UAE business councils and previously lectured at the Austrian Attorneys Academy.

Outside the office, Jakob is an endurance athlete with multiple Ironman finishes, marathons, and multi stage mountain bike races, and has summited Baruntse in the Nepal Himalayas at over 7000 meters.