The UAE chapter, Chambers Litigation 2026 Global Practice Guide
Our contribution to the Chambers Litigation 2026 Global Practice Guide sets out, in one place, how disputes are actually run in the UAE — the structure of the courts, the rules of evidence, and the practical shape of litigation under federal law.
The Global Practice Guides exist to give general counsel and overseas advisers a reliable first orientation to an unfamiliar system. Writing the UAE chapter obliged us to state plainly what we tell clients every week: how a claim begins, how it is proved, and how a judgment is turned into money. What follows is a brief tour of the ground the chapter covers.
The shape of the court system.
Mainland litigation proceeds through three tiers — Court of First Instance, Court of Appeal, and Court of Cassation — with separate federal and local systems depending on the emirate. Dubai and Ras Al Khaimah maintain their own judicial departments; the remaining emirates sit within the federal structure. Alongside them, the DIFC and ADGM courts apply common-law procedure in English, a point of constant practical significance.
How evidence works.
UAE litigation is documentary at its core. There is no broad disclosure obligation of the kind common-law practitioners expect, and witness evidence carries less weight than a well-assembled documentary record. Proceedings are conducted in Arabic, and foreign-language documents must be translated by a licensed legal translator. Expert reports — particularly in construction and accounting disputes — frequently shape the outcome more than oral argument.
“In the UAE, cases are won in the file. The discipline of assembling and translating the documentary record early is decisive far more often than advocacy at a hearing.”
Litigation in practice.
A first-instance matter typically runs through several rounds of written submissions exchanged at scheduled hearings, often with a court-appointed expert in between. Timelines have shortened markedly as the Dubai Courts and others have digitised filing and case management, but appeals remain common and a determined opponent can extend matters considerably.
The chapter also addresses the questions overseas clients ask first: the availability of precautionary attachments, the treatment of interest and costs, and the routes for recognising and enforcing foreign judgments and arbitral awards.
Why the chapter matters.
Being asked to write the UAE chapter is a recognition of the firm’s standing in dispute resolution. More usefully, it is a resource we point clients to — a candid, current account of a system that rewards preparation and punishes assumptions carried over from other jurisdictions.
