Last month saw the replacement of Sir Anthony Evans as Chief Justice of the Dubai International Financial Centre’s (DIFC) Court by Michael Hwang who was formerly appointed Deputy Chief Justice. Sir Anthony Evans who held the post for five years is entering retirement.

Hwang stands for continuity in the course of the DIFC Court which remains at the spearhead of judicial development and reformation in the region. The DIFC Court does not only provide a separate judiciary system reigning over a very special and independent jurisdiction within Dubai and the UAE it also serves at the forefront for innovative development of the judiciary services, having seen the introduction of such - to the region - relatively new ideas and procedures as the development of a pro bono scheme, the establishment of a Small Claims Tribunal, the introduction of a Professional Code of Conduct, an urgent case handling facility and an electronic case management system. A number of memorandums of understanding and enforcement protocols have been concluded between the DIFC Courts and the Dubai Courts but to a large extent the question of defining the limits of DIFC Court jurisdiction vis-à-vis ordinary Dubai Courts jurisdiction remains the most discussed and contemplated topic.