PART TWO · 07 · Law & Regulation

Dispute Resolution & Arbitration

Authored byLegability Reading time · 3 min Updated · Q1 2026

Dispute Resolution Authority (DRA)

The Dispute Resolution Authority (DRA) is the entity within the DIFC that oversees non-judicial dispute resolution services, including arbitration administration. The DIFC Courts sit within the DRA's institutional umbrella as the judicial component of the DIFC's dispute resolution ecosystem.

DIFC-LCIA Arbitration Centre (2008–2021)

For over a decade, the DIFC hosted the DIFC-LCIA Arbitration Centre, established in 2008 as a joint venture between the DIFC and the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA). The centre administered international arbitration proceedings under the DIFC-LCIA Arbitration Rules and provided institutional support for arbitrations seated in the DIFC.

Decree No. 34 of 2021 and Dissolution of DIFC-LCIA

In 2021, Decree No. 34 of 2021 issued by the Ruler of Dubai mandated the dissolution of the DIFC-LCIA Arbitration Centre. The Decree simultaneously established the Dubai International Arbitration Centre (DIAC) as the successor institutional arbitration body for Dubai, subsuming the DIFC-LCIA and the Emirates Maritime Arbitration Centre (EMAC) into a single, unified Dubai arbitration institution. This consolidation was intended to rationalise Dubai's arbitration landscape and enhance international competitiveness by concentrating institutional expertise and administrative resources.

DIAC administers arbitrations pursuant to its own DIAC Arbitration Rules. Arbitrations originally filed with the DIFC-LCIA were transitioned to DIAC's administration pursuant to the Decree's transitional provisions. The DIFC Courts' Arbitration Division remains the supervisory court for arbitrations seated in the DIFC, including DIAC arbitrations with a DIFC seat, and continues to handle applications for recognition and enforcement of arbitral awards from any institutional or ad hoc arbitration. (DIFC Courts Rules, difccourts.ae¹)

In H1 2025, the Arbitration Division recorded 23 claims — a 92% year-on-year increase — with a combined value of AED 4.5 billion, demonstrating "strong demand" and a "notably strong uptake of... interim measures and injunctive relief mechanisms." (DIFC Courts H1 2025 Statistics, difccourts.ae²)

Dubai Law No. 2 of 2025 additionally clarified that the DIFC Courts are "an arbitration friendly forum" and made changes to the "jurisdiction and procedural framework" to offer further "practical benefits for businesses, including the ability to bring employment claims, secure interim measures, and resolve disputes through mediation." (DIFC Courts H1 2025 Statistics, difccourts.ae²)

Mediation Service Centre

In September 2025, the DIFC Courts launched a new Mediation Service Centre, providing structured alternative dispute resolution under a "multi-door courthouse" model. Parties may select mediators and agree fees and terms in advance, conduct sessions through the AI-enabled Court Management System (CMS) or in-person. (DIFC Courts Growth Strategy 2026-2030, difccourts.ae³)

Wills Service Centre

The DIFC Courts' Wills Service Centre provides a secure mechanism for non-Muslim residents and investors to register legally binding wills and plan their estates under DIFC law rather than UAE civil law (which defaults to Sharia succession principles for non-Muslim assets in certain circumstances).

The Wills Service is governed by Part 57 of the DIFC Court Rules (Non-Muslim Wills Registry), which sets out the registration process, requirements for valid wills, and the probate procedure. (DIFC Courts Rules, difccourts.ae¹)

Since its inception, the Wills Service has registered more than 13,400 Wills. In the first six months of 2025 alone, 922 Wills were registered — a 14% increase compared to H1 2024 — and 27 Probate Orders were issued. (DIFC Courts H1 2025 Statistics, difccourts.ae²) In full-year 2024, the Wills Service registered 1,822 Wills, a 21% increase from 2023, with 30 Probate applications — a 7% year-on-year increase. (DIFC Courts 2024 Statistics PR, difccourts.ae⁴)

The Wills Service offers multiple will types to address different asset categories:

Full Will: Covers all assets
Property Will: UAE real property assets
Financial Assets Will: Bank accounts and investment portfolios
Business Owners Will: Business interests and shareholdings
Guardianship Will: Appointment of guardians for minor children
Digital Assets Will: Cryptocurrency and tokenised digital assets (launched October 2024)

(DIFC Courts GITEX 2024, difccourts.ae⁵)

The Digital Assets Will, launched at GITEX Global 2024, empowers individuals to distribute digital assets through a non-custodial DIFC Courts wallet, supporting ETH, BTC, MATIC, USDC, USDT, and HBAR, with future NFT support planned. (DIFC Courts GITEX 2024, difccourts.ae⁵)

Will registration is accessible remotely: an existing online automated Will-drafting service and a Virtual Registry allow individuals living domestically or overseas to create and register a DIFC Courts Will, connecting via video link to a compliance officer in Dubai. Completed Wills may be stored in tejouri, a UAE-based digital vault platform launched in 2022 that uses Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT), biometric authentication, and advanced encryption. (DIFC Courts GITEX 2024, difccourts.ae⁵)

The Wills Service is also referenced in Dubai Law No. 2 of 2025, which clarifies the DIFC Courts' jurisdiction over non-Muslim wills as part of the consolidated court law framework. (DIFC Courts H1 2025 Statistics, difccourts.ae²)