DUBAI, July 24 (Reuters) - The United Arab Emirates' Dana Gas said on Monday that it might take months to obtain a stay of proceedings which seek to have its $700 million of outstanding Islamic bonds declared unlawful in a UAE court.

Dana initiated the proceedings in the Sharjah Federal Court of First Instance last month. It argues that its sukuk, which will mature in October, have become invalid because of changes in Islamic finance in recent years, and must therefore be exchanged for new instruments.

Earlier this month the London High Court ordered Dana to stay the Sharjah proceedings, and have a Sharjah court injunction protecting the company from claims lifted, pending a hearing by the London court in September.

On Monday, however, Dana said it had been informed by its lawyers that the application to stay the Sharjah proceedings would need to be made jointly with other respondents in the case.

"The Sharjah Court further directed that these steps can only be taken following the July/August Sharjah Court judicial recess, and once the respondents located outside the UAE have been formally served using the officially mandated diplomatic service process which can take between three and six months to complete," the company said in a statement.

(Reporting by Andrew Torchia, editing by Davide Barbuscia) ((andrew.torchia@thomsonreuters.com; +9715 6681 7277; Reuters Messaging: andrew.torchia.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))