UAE Law and Practice Contributed by: Abdelhak Attalah and Ghassan Hidar, Attalah Legal Consultancy
Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Judgments Before onshore courts
Border Insolvency (1997), in contrast to the DIFC and ADGM jurisdictions. Therefore, using the DIFC courts, for instance, as a “conduit” route to facilitate the co- ordination of insolvency proceedings against compa - nies that are part of a member country could be a workable solution. If the DIFC court is used as a “conduit” route, for - eign proceedings must be recognised in line with the UNCITRAL Model Law on Cross-Border Insolvency, provided certain requirements are fulfilled, subject to the usual public policy limitations. 6.6 Foreign Creditors The New Bankruptcy Law treats domestic and foreign creditors equally. As a result, foreign creditors enjoy the same rights and treatment as local creditors when it comes to initiating or participating in any bankruptcy proceedings within the UAE. 7. Duties and Liability of Directors and Officers 7.1 Duties of Directors Upon issuance of the bankruptcy adjudication deci - sion, the debtor will be prohibited from managing or disposing of their assets and business; the trustee will take over management of these assets and oper - ations. Any actions taken by the debtor on or after the date of this decision will be considered as having occurred post-issuance, and any actions contrary to this decision will be deemed invalid. The trustee has the authority to petition the Bankrupt - cy Court to invalidate the debtor’s actions and request necessary precautionary measures to safeguard creditors’ rights. However, this restriction does not prevent the debtor from taking steps to protect their own rights, provided these actions do not adversely affect the interests of creditors. In addition, the Bank - ruptcy Court may, at the request of either the trustee or the debtor, allow the debtor to continue operat - ing their business if it serves the public interest, the debtor’s interest or the creditors’ interest. The Court will appoint a manager for the debtor’s business and wages if requested by the trustee. The debtor may be appointed as the manager, with their wage con -
Foreign bankruptcy judgments are subject to a court declaration of enforceability (exequatur), provided they fulfil the conditions set forth in Article 222 of the Civil Procedure Law. In addition, the UAE is a party to the Riyadh Arab Agreement for Judicial Coopera - tion (1983) and the Gulf Cooperation Council Conven - tion (1996), ensuring the reciprocal recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments. It also has reci - procity with England and Wales following the enforce - ment of a Dubai court judgment in England in Lenkor Energy Trading DMCC v Puri [2020] EWHC 75. Before offshore courts DIFC and ADGM legislation has adopted the UNCI - TRAL Model Law on Cross-Border Insolvency (1997). DIFC courts The DIFC courts are required to adhere to UAE treaties for the mutual enforcement of judgments. The DIFC courts also have established bilateral memoranda of understanding with several foreign courts, including: • the High Court of England and Wales; • the High Court of Hong Kong; • the Supreme Court of Singapore; and • the Federal Court of Malaysia. In addition, a foreign judgment must be final and con - clusive in order to be enforceable, and must not be related to taxes, fines or penalties, and the foreign court must have had proper jurisdiction. Challenges to enforcement are limited to fraud, public policy viola - tions or lack of natural justice. ADGM courts The ADGM courts are like the DIFC courts but more restrictive, requiring established reciprocity for the enforcement of foreign judgments, orders and awards. 6.5 Co-Ordination in Cross-Border Cases There are no cross-border bankruptcy rules imple - mented within the New Bankruptcy Law. The UAE has not adopted the UNCITRAL Model Law on Cross-
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