News from the Courts

· The DIFC Courts published their 2014 Annual Report, detailing another milestone year in the history of Dubai’s English language common law courts with the total value of claims and counterclaims filed increasing by 81 per cent to cross one billion dirhams for the first time.

Cases totalling AED1.76 billion in value were filed with the DIFC Courts in 2014, while the caseloads of the Court of First Instance (CFI) and Small Claims Tribunal (SCT) rose by 29 per cent and 69 per cent respectively. In addition, the size and complexity of cases continued to rise, with the average claim amount in the CFI increasing by 25 per cent from AED33.5 million per case in 2013 to AED42 million in the following year.

Enforcement remained a central focus in 2014 with the DIFC Courts signing cooperation memoranda with leading international commercial centres including the Federal Court of Australia and the High Court of Kenya (Commercial and Admiralty Division), the Supreme Court of Singapore and the US Federal District Court for the Southern District of New York. A dedicated Enforcement Department was also established in 2014 with responsibility for handling the enforcement of all DIFC Courts’ decisions locally and internationally. The DIFC Courts is also seeking an agreement with Chinese Courts on enforcing its judgements as trade ties between the two countries expand. In a bid to connect with countries that are most important to UAE, the Courts are currently in discussion with its Shanghai counterparts. However, the timing of when the agreement would be finalised was not revealed.

· The DIFC Courts released three documents for a one month period of public consultation. The first is a draft Order by the chief justice with the effect of extending the jurisdiction of the DIFC Courts Small Claims Tribunal (SCT) to hear all disputes, whatever the subject matter, below the value of AED500,000 and with a maximum value of AED1,000,000 where parties agree. The elective jurisdiction of the SCT remains uncapped in the context of employment claims.

The second is a Practice Direction which provides for de novo reconsideration by a DIFC Courts judge, upon application, of judicial decisions issued by Registrars, Judicial or Court officers and is based on the current practice in Singapore.

The third is a proposed revision of the DIFC Court fees. Notable amendments include a tiered fee schedule which incorporates the applicable fees to be paid for all standard hearings throughout the case, including the Case Management Conference, the Pre-Trial Review and three days of trial, meaning that the filing fee will now essentially be an ‘all-in-one’ payment. The revised Court fees further include reimbursements of filing fees for settlement, which varies at each stage of the proceedings, and amended enforcement fees taking into consideration where the judgment or order being executed was made. The public was invited to submit their comments by the end of April 2015.

·  Senior in-house lawyers from some of the world’s leading companies came together recently for the DIFC Courts General Counsel Forum to share experience, examine trends and discuss global dispute resolution best practices. Created in 2013, the General Counsel Forum has become an important platform for dialogue and liaison between the DIFC Courts and leading in-house counsel. The meeting was chaired by chief justice Michael Hwang of the DIFC Courts, and also included The Honourable Loretta Preska, chief judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, and chief justice Mohammed Al Suboosi from the Commercial Division of the Dubai Courts. Attendees identified key current and emerging legal and judicial developments, and discussed the future plans for both the DIFC Courts and the Dubai Courts.  23 organisations are represented on the General Counsel Forum/.The DIFC Courts organise two General Counsel Forums per year, one in Dubai and the other in prominent cities across the globe.