UAE Law and Practice Contributed by: Gerard Moore, Patricia Ugalde Revilla, Antonin Sobek and Alanood Sinjab, Mayer Brown
them before the tribunal. The tribunal may require proof of the representatives’ authority. Offshore (DIFC) The DIFC Arbitration Law is silent on these points. However, legal representatives are required to be reg - istered on the DIFC Courts Register of Practitioners to appear before the DIFC courts for matters relating to an arbitration (eg, interim measures or enforcement matters). Offshore (ADGM) The requirements for proceedings seated within the ADGM are more explicit. Schedule 1, Section 3 (p) defines a “Party Representative” broadly as any per - son who appears in an arbitration and makes submis - sions, arguments or representations to the tribunal on behalf of that party, whether or not that person holds a legal qualification or is admitted to practise law in any jurisdiction. 8. Evidence 8.1 Collection and Submission of Evidence Pleading Stage The applicable legal framework, the parties’ agreed procedure and/or institutional rules usually determine how evidence is collected and submitted. In practice, pleadings are commonly accompanied by the key documents on which each party relies, and further document production is available if ordered by the tribunal or provided for under the applicable rules. Disclosure Stage There is no automatic right to broad discovery or disclosure under any of the three statutes. Onshore UAE follows a civil law system, which does not favour extensive document production. However, the tribunal has discretion under Article 33 of the UAE Arbitra - tion Law, Article 26 of the DIFC Arbitration Law and Section 34 of the ADGM Arbitration Regulations to determine the procedures and methods for exchang - ing evidence, including document production. Typically, arbitral proceedings also adopt, or use for guidance, the IBA Rules on the Taking of Evidence in International Arbitration. In that case, document pro -
duction follows the structured “Redfern Schedule” request-and-objection process, with the tribunal ruling on contested requests based on relevance, materiality and proportionality. Privilege The UAE Arbitration Law, the DIFC Arbitration Law and the ADGM Arbitration Regulations do not con - tain express provisions on legal privilege. Onshore, communications with licensed UAE advocates are protected by confidentiality. This, however, does not apply to in-house counsel. Offshore, the DIFC and ADGM courts apply common law principles, which afford broader recognition of legal professional privi - lege. Where the IBA Rules are adopted, Article 9.2 (b) provides a framework for the tribunal to assess claims of privilege. Hearing Stage The tribunal decides whether to hold oral hearings or proceed on a documents-only basis. Witnesses and experts may be heard and cross-examined at hear - ings, under Article 34 of the UAE Arbitration Law, Arti - cle 29 of the DIFC Arbitration Law and Section 43 of the ADGM Arbitration Regulations. The tribunal, or a party with tribunal approval, may also seek court assistance in the taking of evidence (see Article 36 of the UAE Arbitration Law; Article 30 of the DIFC Arbitration Law; Section 48 of the ADGM For onshore arbitral proceedings, Articles 1 and 2 of Federal Decree by Law No 35 of 2022 set out the fundamental principle that the burden of proof rests on the claimant. The claimant must prove their claim, while the respondent is responsible for disproving it. Article 33 (7) of the UAE Arbitration Law gives tribunals broad discretion to determine the rules of evidence – this includes, for instance, the IBA Rules on the Taking of Evidence (see 8.1 Collection and Submission of Evidence ). In offshore proceedings, the rules of evidence are governed by party autonomy and broad tribunal dis - cretion. Under Article 26 of the DIFC Arbitration Law and Section 34 of the ADGM Arbitration Regulations, Arbitration Regulations). 8.2 Rules of Evidence
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