The UAE’s story has often been told through its skylines, ambitions and milestones. But at a time of regional conflict and global uncertainty, Voices of the UAE, a Khaleej Times editorial series, has told that story through the people who live it every day. The six-part series has captured confidence in the country’s future through the perspectives of those driving its economy and shaping its narrative. ‘People’, the final instalment, brings the series home through residents, entrepreneurs, educators and long-time KT readers who have built their lives in the UAE, placing their trust in a country they see not just as a place of opportunity, but as a place of safety, stability and belonging.
Cynthia Trench, Principal, Trench & Associates legal consultants | KT subscriber
This expat lawyer helped shape reforms
Cynthia Trench first arrived in the UAE in 1989, when Dubai was still a small town and what she admires the most is how the country has evolved. “This is a nation that actively chooses progress,” she said. “I have seen each decade bring visionary and practical reforms.”
For her, one of the prime examples of how the country’s willingness to listen, adapt, and codify change for the betterment of its diverse population came in 2013. She proposed an idea to DIFC in 2013. Two years later, the DIFC Wills & Probate Registry was born. “The leadership didn’t just listen; they acted,” she said. “By 2015, a new law and registry were created, giving non-Muslim expatriates a clear, Sharia-compliant path to estate planning. That’s not just legal reform—it’s a profound understanding of the people who live and invest here.”
She added that her “complete confidence” in the country came from witnessing the government’s willingness to draft new company procedures back in the early 1990s as well as their present-day embrace of fintech, sustainability and virtual assets. “The UAE consistently demonstrates that its future is built on agility, legal clarity and inclusion,” she said.
Her work has seen immense professional growth as well. In April 1996, she became a legal consultant licensed by the Rulers Court of Dubai- widely believed to be the first expatriate woman to do so. “That milestone didn’t happen in London, Hong Kong, or New York,” she said. “It happened here. I have never felt more accepted than in the UAE and that includes my home town, Hong Kong.”
She said that living in the UAE taught her the art of cultural fluency and quiet resilience. In the early 1990s, as one of the few foreign female lawyers in a male-dominated field, she also learnt that authority comes not from volume but from value.
Perhaps one of the most important thing UAE gave her was community. She has been on the board of local schools and currently serves the British Community Assistance Foundation and the Equestrian Foundation for People of Determination. “This country didn’t just host my business; it shaped my ethos of service,” she said. “Community in the UAE means shared responsibility and quiet action, not just in good times, but especially when the path forward is unclear. The UAE’s uniqueness is that it legislates for community while also allowing neighbourly bonds to flourish. In uncertainty, I have learned that you don’t need to look far for help here, it’s often standing right next to you, ready to act.”
Summary of article of Khaleej Times
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