It is my pleasure as Chair of the ICC UAE Commission on Arbitration and as Vice-Chair of the ICC Commission on Arbitration and ADR, Paris, to introduce the second edition of Summaries of UAE Courts’ Decisions on Arbitration.

The first edition, published in 2013, has become a valuable resource for practitioners and international arbitrators in understanding the UAE law and court rulings contained therein.

Since the introduction of the first edition, arbitration in the UAE has progressed, developed and matured. Interest in arbitration continues to grow among local and international practitioners which has resulted in an increase in arbitration cases locally and internationally. The second edition is therefore timely in that it provides arbitrators and practitioners with a summary of more recent court judgments which can be used as precedents and references in cases. The courts in the UAE at both local and federal level, including the DIFC Courts, have delivered a number of very good judgments, most of which are in support of arbitration despite the absence of a comprehensive arbitration law in the UAE (a more comprehensive law is still in draft and expected to come into effect in 2017). These court precedents have become important sources of jurisprudence and provide the necessary confidence to arbitrators and practitioners in the region across a variety of arbitration-related topics.

The book comprises 43 judgments that have been carefully selected from the Federal Supreme Court, the Court of Cassation in Abu Dhabi, Dubai Court of Cassation and the DIFC Courts on a number of different commercial disputes including matters of enforcement of foreign arbitration awards. It also provides an easy reference and the summaries of judgments go into detail in referencing the principle set out by the court on each case. I have no doubt this book will add to the development of arbitration and be used as a reference handbook by practitioners and arbitrators locally and internationally. It also provides excellent material for educational institutes.

The second edition would not have come to light without the hard work and extensive efforts of the team who contributed to the first edition and continued to work jointly with the ICC UAE Commission to develop the book. I extend my thanks and gratitude to Hassan Arab, Lara Hammoud and Graham Lovett in producing this book and assisting in selecting judgments, and translating and overseeing the publication of the book with the ICC. I also would like to recognize and thank the ICC staff in Paris for their support and publication of the book.

Essam Al Tamimi
Chair, ICC UAE Commission on Arbitration