Abu Dhabi

  Novelty  It has generally been the case that a jurisdictional challenge against the courts to hear a dispute where an arbitration agreement exists must be made at the first hearing that takes place, at the first level of the overseeing trial court. (To clarify – the ‘first hearing’ is in reality usually the first […]

  Novelty In a landmark judgment by the Abu Dhabi Cassation Court in October 2021, the Court confirmed that an agent/representative may bind a principal to an arbitration agreement if they have: Explicit written authority. Explicit verbal authority. Implied authority. Apparent authority. It was recently the case that the Dubai Courts acknowledged apparent or implied

  As of first November 2021, the tax dispute procedures have been amended pursuant to Federal Decree-Law No. 28/2021 creating a new opportunity to re-litigate disputes, permitting payments by installments or bank guarantees, providing longer time-bars for objection actions, reducing the payments required to proceed with a tax dispute, and other notable changes. Re-litigation Article

  In a recent judgment issued in October 2021, the Dubai Cassation Court addressed the permissible number of extensions that may be granted to the time limit for rendering an arbitration award under the DIAC Arbitration Rules 2007 (“DIAC Rules”). DIAC Rules Article 36 of the DIAC Rules provides that the time limit within which

  On 14 September 2021, H.H. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum – the Ruler of Dubai – issued Dubai Decree No. 34/2021 (the Decree), which ameliorates and enhances the position of the Dubai International Arbitration Centre (DIAC) in the global industry and completely redefines the arbitration ecosystem in Dubai. Click here to read our coverage

  Brief  The Dubai Courts issued Circular No. 9/2021 on 13 September 2021 mandating that an authorized expert prepared technical report be filed when submitting a statement of claim related to construction, liquidation, or intellectual property claims for acceptance of the claim. The Circular instructs the case management office of the Dubai Courts to reject

  Brief In a recent judgment by the Joint Judicial Tribunal in March 2021, the Tribunal ordered that: “…the United Arab Emirates is a party to the New York Convention for the recognition of foreign arbitration decisions and their implementation by Decree No. 43 of 2006, which states to accept the procedure in any jurisdiction

  Case brief In May 2021, the UAE Federal Supreme Court ruled on the first tax evasion criminal case ordering payment of five times the amount of the evaded tax, amounting to almost 4.2 million Dirhams. At a hearing in October 2020, the Federal Primary Court ordered the taxpayer to pay five times the tax

  In a recent judgment, the Federal Supreme Court ruled that the time limits related to tax disputes do not necessarily commence when notification is issued – but rather require evidence of the receipt and fulfillment of knowledge of the taxpayer of that decision and its contents. The Supreme Court judgment sets a new test

  In April 2021, the Dubai Cassation Court refused to grant an arbitration award writ of enforcement for violation of public policy on the grounds that the reasoning and decision of the award were not signed by the arbitrator. Background In 2020, a net-winner of an international / foreign arbitration proceeding submitted the arbitral award