The number and value of cases handled by the court of Dubai's main financial hub last year increased for the sixth year in a row, new figures show.
The DIFC Courts, the emirate's English language, commercial common law judicial system, saw a 40 per cent year-on-year increase in its caseload and the value of cases soared more than 400 per cent from $33 million to just over $169 million.
The figures were revealed in The DIFC Courts Annual Review for 2012 - and the legal hub puts the increase in the value of the cases heard by its judiciary down to the "increasing complexity of commercial cases coming before the Court".
More cases means more lawyers - and the number of lawyers registered with the Courts grew by almost 50 per cent to reach 349 by the end of 2012. The DIFC Courts are now an international forum for the resolution of disputes and can hear any cases for which they have been selected as judicial forum of choice.
Michael Hwang, the Courts' chief justice, said that 2012 would "be remembered as a historic year for the DIFC Courts, as we completed our first 12 months as a fully international commercial court."
Mark Beer, Registrar of the DIFC Courts, added: "The DIFC Courts are steadily emerging as the forum of choice for English language international dispute resolution in our region - and we are fully committed to meeting our responsibilities."
© 7Days 2013
