1. finance
2. bank

FACTSHEET 2015
SMALL CLAIMS TRIBUNAL (SCT)
FIGURES FOR THE FIRST QUARTER OF 2015
The only operating tribunal of its kind in the region, the SCT was set
up to enable access to justice in a swift and efficient manner. The
SCT operates with a community approach that promotes settlement,
with 90% of SCT cases resolved in less than four weeks. Cases in the
SCT are resolved in an expeditious, cost-efficient manner without the
need for lawyers.
A COMMMUNITY APPROACH PROMOTES
SETTLEMENT:
FACTSHEET 2015
The SCT can hear:
claims within the jurisdiction of the DIFC where:
- The amount or value of the claim does not exceed AED 500,000;
or
- The claim relates to the employment or former employment of a
party and the amount or value of the claim exceeds AED 500,000
and all parties to the claim elect in writing that it be heard by the SCT.
There is no value limit for the SCT’s elective jurisdiction in the context of
employment claims;
or
- In the context of claims which are not employment related, the
amount or value of the claim does not exceed 1,000,000 AED; and
all parties elect in writing that it be heard by the SCT, such election
can be made in the underlying contract (if any) or subsequently.
The SCT judge reserves the discretion to allow parties to be legally
represented where such representation is considered appropriate.
Cases in the SCT are resolved in an expeditious,
cost-efficient manner without the need for
lawyers, with 90% of disputes resolved in less
than four weeks.
Small Claims Tribunal
2015 From Jan
to March
2014 From Jan
to March
38
24
No of Cases
Court of First Instance
2015 From Jan
to March
2014 From Jan
to March
7
1
2015 From Jan
to March
2014 From Jan
to March
3
2
2015 From Jan
to March
2014 From Jan
to March
None
None
2015 From Jan
to March
2014 From Jan
to March
2
3
No of Cases
Court of Appeal
No of Cases
Arbitration
No of Cases
Enforcement
COURT OF FIRST INSTANCE (CFI)
The CFI has exclusive jurisdiction over any civil or commercial
case when it relates to the DIFC. It can also hear cases when the
contract in question specifies DIFC Courts’ jurisdiction (pre-dispute
jurisdiction) or when both parties elect to use DIFC Courts
(post-dispute jurisdiction) or when both parties elect to use DIFC
Courts to resolve a dispute which has already arisen (post-dispute
jurisdiction). Proceedings in the CFI are heard by one Judge.
No of Cases
Total Procedures in the first quarter of 2015
(CFI , ARB , CA , ENF & SCT) = 50
Total Procedures in the first quarter of 2014
(CFI , ARB , CA , ENF & SCT) = 30
For more information and news:
www.difccourts.ae
@difccourts
COURT OF APPEAL (CA)
The Court of Appeal deals with a variety of civil and commercial
disputes. It comprises panel of three judges, and deals with:
• Appeals filed against judgements and awards made by the CFI
• Interpretation of any article of the DIFC’s laws based upon the
request of any of the DIFC’s establishments, provided that the
establishment obtains leave of the Chief Justice in this regard.
Such interpretation shall have the power of law. The CA is the
highest court in the DIFC Courts and no appeal shall arise from
a decision of this Court.
difccourts
@difccourts
Difccourts
Subscribe to our Email Alerts: http://difccourts.
ae/contact-us/
User guides and claim forms for all courts can
be found at the DIFC registry, or on the website:
www.difccourts.ae
JUDICIAL BENCH
• Chief Justice Michael Hwang SC (Singapore)
• Deputy Chief Justice Sir John Murray Chadwick (UK)
• HE Justice Ali Shamis Al Madhani (UAE)
• Justice Sir Anthony David Colman (UK)
• Justice Sir David Steel (UK)
• HE Justice Omar Juma Al Muhairi (UAE)
• Justice Roger Giles (Australia)
• Justice Sir Richard Field (UK)
• HE Justice Shamlan Al Sawalehi (UAE)
• Justice Tan Zaki Azmi (Malaysia)
REGISTRY TEAM
• Mark Beer, OBE, Chief Executive and Registrar
• Amna Al Owais, Deputy Chief Executive and
Deputy Registrar
• Natasha Bakirci, Assistant Registrar
• Maha Al Mehairi, Judicial Officer
• Nassir Al Nasser, Judicial Officer
• Lema Hatim, Senior Case Progression Officer
• Ayesha Bin Kalban, Case Progression Officer
THE COURTS USERS COMMITTEE (CUC)
• Al Tamimi & Company
• Clyde & Co.
• DFSA
• DIFC Authority
• Galadari Advocates Legal Consultants
• DIFC Governor’s Office
• Hadef & Partners
• Jones Day
FACTSHEET 2015
THE RULES SUBCOMMITTEE (RSC)
• Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons LLC
• Al Tamimi & Company
• BakerBotts
• Clifford Chance
• Fichte & Co Legal Consultancy
• Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP
• DIFC Governor’s Office
• Hadef & Partners
• Jones Day
• Norton Rose Fulbright (Middle East) LLP
COST FREE TRIAL (PRO BONO PROGRAMME)
• Head of Pro the Bono programme, Amna Al Owais (Deputy Registrar and CEO of the DIFC Courts)
• Al Tamimi & Company, Rita Jaballah
• Afridi & Angell, Khadija Ali
• Clyde & Co, John Lewis
• Dubai Land Department, Emad Farouq
• Squire, Patton Boggs, Scott Hutton
• King and Wood Mallesons, Mark Hoyle
OUR BENCH
Combined experience spans more than 34 countries and more
than 350 years
• Three resident judges and two resident Judicial Officers
Register of Practitioners
Part I Registrations - Law Firms
123 Law Firms
Part II Registrations - Individual Lawyers 589 Practitioners
OUTREACH
The DIFC Courts are committed to transparency and customer
engagement. This requires regular and robust communications
with stakeholders conducted via:
• Quarterly newsletters
• Annual Reports
• Twitter
• LinkedIn
• Instagram
• YouTube
• An actively managed website
• Regular events:quarterly Lecture Series and Annual Legal Gala Dinner
• Media relations
• News alerts
DEVELOPING EMIRATI TALENT
50% of the DIFC Courts team are UAE nationals.
AWARDS
• Al Tamimi & Company
• BakerBotts
• DFSA
• Gibson Dunn & Crutcher LLP
• DIFC Governor’s Office
• Hadef & Partners
• Jones Day
• Stephenson Harwood
• 2014 DIFC Courts became the first Dubai Government entity to
receive five stars under the country’s new rating system for
government services.
• 2014 UK Law Society Award for Excellence in International
Legal Services
• 2013 Olympian Award for Best Customer Premises
• 2013 International Standard for Service Excellence (TISSE) certification
• 2012 UAE Customer Service Week STAR Award for Individual Skills
• 2011 UAE Customer Service Week STAR Award for Best Public
Sector Initiative
• 2010 Ideas Arabia Idea of the Year Award for the Code of
Professional Conduct
GENERAL COUNSEL FORUM MEMBERS
eREGISTRY
• Aggreko
• ADCB
• Baker Hughes
• BAE Systems
• Carillion plc
• Citi Group
• Coats Group
• Commercial Division of the Dubai Courts
• DFSA • DIFC Governor’s Office
• DMCC
• DP World
• Emirates Group
• Emirates NBD
• ETA Ascon Star Group
• Fajr Capital
• Falcon and Associates
• HSBC
• Jumeirah Group
• LG Electronics
• Noga holding
• Smartmatic Limited
• Standard Chartered Bank
The DIFC Courts operate a full registry service on-line.
This enables remote, 24/7, secure case progression and
administration, e-payments and practitioner registration facilities.
EDUCATION SUBCOMMITTEE (ESC)
Registered Practitioners
In 2015, 113 law firms in (Part I) registration and 320 individual
lawyers registered in (Part II).
Courtroom
The state-of-the-art courtroom communications equipment played
a key role in supporting the increasing international caseload
in 2015. Parties were able to contribute to hearings via video
conference or have access to their cases online.
DIFC COURTS ACADEMY
The DIFC Courts Academy, which forms part of the Sheikh Maktoum Bin Mohammed Al Maktoum Initiatives for Legal
Excellence, was launched in 2012. It is designed to give lawyers in the UAE a better understanding of DIFC Courts’ laws
and procedures.
The work of the DIFC Courts Academy includes:
• The DIFC Courts Academy certificate has been recognised as qualifying for an exemption for the course Arbitration and
Litigation – Principles & Practices, which is a mandatory course in the LLM programme at the University of Dubai, College of Law.
• The Certificate in DIFC Courts’ Laws and Procedures comprises a set of 13 sessions recurring weekly for 1 ½ hours
physical attendance. The sessions held in English and attendance at 10 out of 13 sessions is mandatory.
• The DIFC Courts host twice yearly Advocacy Training Programmes to train participants on common law advocacy skills
and techniques, such as cross-examination and examination in chief, based on practical case examples.
• The DIFC Courts Lecture Series, which invites internationally renowned legal practitioners to share their experience and
opinions with a gathered audience in Dubai.
COOPERATION WITH OTHER COURTS AT HOME AND ABROAD
The DIFC Courts are independent from, but complementary to, the UAE’s established Arabic-language civil law system–
offering choice that strengthens both processes and ensures public access to world class justice. Since their inception,
DIFC Courts have signed many important memoranda with local and international courts.
DIFC Courts’ money judgments can be enforced internationally through treaties such as the GCC Convention and Riyadh
Convention, conventions with China, France, and reciprocal arrangements with many common law courts overseas such
as a chain of enforcement memoranda signed in recent years by the DIFC Courts with leading international jurisdictions,
including the Commercial Court of England and Wales, the Supreme Court of Singapore, the Federal Court of Australia, the
New South Wales Supreme Court, the High Court of Kenya (Commercial and Admiralty Division) and United States District
Court for the Southern District of New York (SDNY).
The DIFC Courts also work closely with their partners the Dubai Courts, and jointly organised the annual conference of the
International Association of Court Administration (IACA) in Dubai, the first time the event had been held in the Middle East.
ENFORCEMENT
The DIFC Courts’ English language common-law judicial system is dedicated to providing and enforcing world class justice: the
Courts are an official judicial arm of the Emirate of Dubai within the United Arab Emirates. The Courts’ expanded jurisdiction
(as of October 2011) enables them to take commercial cases from the UAE, GCC and internationally and to enforce rulings
accordingly, based on regional and international legal conventions.
FACTSHEET 2015
Our Guide to Enforcement is essential reading for DIFC Courts’ registered lawyers, and all other interested parties, to know
where they stand in relation to enforcement in the GCC, the Arab World and beyond, including key growth markets in Asia.
The UAE’s position as a global dispute resolution hub has been strengthened with the launch of the DIFC Courts Enforcement
Department. Operating under the leadership of HE Judge Omar Al Muhairi, the department has been created to ensure the
simple and speedy enforcement of orders made by both the DIFC Courts and other jurisdictions.
Through a series of memoranda with leading international jurisdictions, the DIFC Courts established reliable enforcement
frameworks. Their money judgments can be enforced internationally through treaties such as the GCC Convention and Riyadh
Convention, conventions with China, France, and reciprocal arrangements with many common law courts overseas as follows:
Guide to Enforcement: Please go to: www.difccourts.ae and access ‘Publications’
PRO BONO PROGRAMME
The Pro Bono Programme was created for those who cannot afford a lawyer to receive access to free legal advice. Services
range from basic advice to full case management and representation in proceedings.
As of March 2015, 40 law firms and 91 in-house counsels have associated themselves with this programme.
The Pro Bono Clinic initiative was launched at the start of 2012, and 11 clinics were held in 2013. A further 24 were held during
2014. Over 600 attendees from the legal community gathered at the 2014 Gala Dinner and raised AED 150,000 to support the
Pro Bono Programme in 2015. This year Gala Dinner will take place on 29 October for booking contact: [email protected]
CODE OF PROFESSIONAL CONDUCT
The DIFC Courts issued a mandatory Code of Professional Conduct in 2009 by Practice Direction. The Code is the first
of its kind in the region, and stipulates a standard of conduct with which all legal practitioners registered with the DIFC
Courts are required to comply. The original 2009 Code of Conduct was restricted in its scope insofar as it focused
predominantly on practitioners’ conduct in the courtroom. The goal of the Code was to ensure that all parties to a dispute
have access to lawyers committed to the highest professional standards of conduct and advocacy.
In March 2013 the DIFC Courts Code of Best Legal Professional Practice was launched, to act as a voluntary Code,
guiding conduct of legal practitioners both inside and outside of the courtroom. This Code, although voluntary in that it
does not impose any potential sanctions on practitioners, serves as a benchmark for best practice for legal professionals
operating in the DIFC.
In September 2014, a revised mandatory Code of Conduct entered into force, which is an amplified binding Code, under
which all practitioners registered with the DIFC Courts will be held accountable. The revised mandatory Code
incorporates certain provisions from the earlier Code of Best Legal Professional Practice (2013), voluntary aspirational
benchmark of expected ethical conduct on the part of legal practitioners, and is based on the 2009 Code of Conduct.
A Supplementary Practice Direction has also been issued alongside the new Mandatory Code, which explains and
elucidates the Code’s provisions in more detail.
CONTACT US
DUBAI INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL CENTRE COURTS
Ground Floor, Building 4, The Gate District, DIFC
PO Box 211724, Dubai, UAE
Tel: +971 4 427 3333, Fax: +971 4 427 3330
DIFC Courts Hours of Operation: 8am to 5pm, Sunday to Thursday
DIFC Courts Registry Opening Hours: 10am to 4pm, Sunday to Thursday
Emergency Application Number: 24/7 on +971 4 427 3331