Dubai Conference ‘Court Excellence and Innovation: Today and Tomorrow 2018’
News
Guest lecture International Commercial Courts Cyprus
Xandra Kramer gave a guest lecture on ‘International commercial courts: a game changer in international litigation?’ at the Neapolis University Pafos in Cyprus on 12 April 2024. She discussed the rise of international commercial courts in the Middle East and Europe, in the context of needs of international business, court specialisation and access to justice and in relation to international arbitration.
Focussing on key features of these courts she gave insights on the different courts, and in particular the Singapore and Netherlands Commercial Court. Highlighting some innovative features and the opportunities the Hague Judgments Convention of 2019 offers, she concluded that these courts have an effect on the international litigation market, but they have not triggered a huge shift from arbitration or other courts to these new business courts.
Published: November 10, 2018
On 8 and 9 November, Emma van Gelder and Georgia Antonopoulou attended the Dubai Conference ‘Court Excellence and Innovation: Today and Tomorrow 2018’. The conference kicked off presenting the International Framework for Court Excellence. Can the success of courts as service providers be measured and if yes what should the criteria be? Courts’ best practices across different jurisdictions were presented and their potential to improve civil litigation was discussed. In light of the rise of cross-border disputes, the opportunities for courts across jurisdictions to collaborate and to establish partnerships so as to dispense ambiguity for future court users and to improve efficiency for enforcement proceedings were explored. The Memoranda of Guidance on the Recognition and Enforcement of Civil Judgements, that the Dubai International Financial Center Courts (DIFC) have signed with foreign courts, were used as an example of judicial cooperation across jurisdictions. Furthermore, judges of the DIFC Small Claims Tribunal and the Commercial Court of Dubai, drew upon their experience in dispute resolution. While the Small Claims Tribunal focuses on the rapid resolution of low value cases by increasingly making use of technology and alternative dispute resolution methods, the Commercial Court aims to accommodate international commercial disputes and contribute in establishing Dubai as an attractive investment destination. The subsequent panels centered on the use of technology in court administration and judicial decision making. In particular, the panelists considered the benefits and challenges of remote hearings, service via email or even social media and the use of artificial intelligence in the adjudication of cases. The role of the judiciary and the legal profession in the advent of online courts and the emergence of online dispute resolution platforms lead to an intriguing discussion that questioned current court practices.