UAE Law and Practice Contributed by: Antonios Dimitracopoulos and Martin Khoshdel, BSA Law
9. Confidentiality 9.1 Extent of Confidentiality
The award must be rendered within six months from the date of the first arbitration hearing, which is usu - ally the case management hearing. The tribunal may extend the time limit by six months unless the parties agree a longer period. Article 38 of the DIFC Arbitration Law stipulates the following requirements: • the award must be in writing and signed by the arbitrator(s), with at least the majority signing the award and with the reasons for the omission of a signature stated; • the reasons for the award must be stated unless the parties agreed otherwise or if there is a settle - ment; • the award must record the date and seat of the arbitration; • after the award is made, a copy signed by the arbi - trators must be delivered to each party; and • the tribunal must fix the costs of the arbitration as outlined in Article 38 (5). The DIFC Arbitration Law does not stipulate a time limit within which the award must be rendered. Section 55 of the ADGM Arbitration Regulations stipu - • the reasons for the award must be stated unless the parties agreed otherwise or if there is a settle - ment; • the award must record the date and seat of the arbitration; • the award may be electronically signed; • an electronic copy of the award is to be supplied to the parties, with a hard copy to be supplied if requested; and • the tribunal must fix the costs of the arbitration as outlined in Section 55 (6) ‒ if the tribunal has not fixed costs, then the parties may seek an award on costs within 30 days of receiving the award. lates the following requirements: • the award must be in writing; The ADGM Arbitration Regulations also do not stipu - late a time limit within which the award must be ren - dered.
Article 48 of the Federal Arbitration Law only refers to the confidentiality of the arbitral award as opposed to the arbitral proceedings. However, it can safely be deduced that if the arbitral award is considered con - fidential, such confidentiality would also extend to the proceedings leading up to the award. Article 14 of the DIFC Arbitration Law and Article 45 of the ADGM Arbitration Regulations both expressly pro - vide for the confidentiality of the proceedings, subject to the general exceptions: • if the parties agreed otherwise; and/or • if publication is required in legal proceedings. Article 41 of the Federal Arbitration Law contains the requirements for an arbitral award. The requirements are: • the award must be in writing; • if the tribunal is three-member, the award must be by at least a majority and, if the opinions are diver - gent, then the chairperson shall issue the award unless the parties agree otherwise – dissenting opinions must be noted down; • it must be signed, with any refusal to sign bearing the reasons for the refusal – although the award is only legally binding if signed by the majority; • reasons for the award must be stated unless agreed otherwise or the applicable law does not require the giving of reasons; 10. The Award 10.1 Legal Requirements • the award must include the names and addresses of the litigants, the names and nationalities of the arbitrators, a copy of the arbitration agreement, a summary of the litigants’ arguments, statements and documents, the dispositive award, the reasons for the award if required, and the date and place of issuance; • the award must record the seat of arbitration; and • the date of the award must be included.
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