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UAE: FNC nod for draft law to amicably settle civil, commercial disputes

Abu Dhabi - Move seeks to reduce pendency of cases in courts and also lessen litigation costs.

The Federal National Council (FNC) has approved a draft law regulating mediation in the settlement of civil and commercial disputes in the UAE.

The law, which was discussed and passed by the FNC on Tuesday, aims to enhance the country's competitiveness globally in transacting businesses and to reduce the number of cases handled by courts and litigation costs.

The law provides for ways on how the mediator, which is the competent court, should handle the procedures and also lays out regulations for implementing the mediation between disputing parties.

The government had proposed the introduction of this bill as a way to settle commercial disputes amicably between parties without moving courts.

“The law was intended to address the need for the conflicting parties to quickly resolve their disputes and ensure that justice is achieved in the easiest way possible,’ said Hamad Rahoumi, first deputy Speaker of the FNC.

“The law is also aimed at developing the spirit of reconciliation between the disputing parties through amicable solutions and continuous relations, which ultimately leads to reducing the burden on the judiciary and at the same time dispensing prompt justice,” he said.

The draft law stipulates that it is permissible to conduct a mediation in all disputes and the reconciliation should be conducted in a manner that doesn’t conflict with the legislation in force or the public order and morals.

It takes into account the laws that regulate the provisions of mediation in dealing with the whole or part of the dispute.

The law provides for assigning mediators at various designated reconciliation centres.

The mediators should be from registered experts at the Ministry of Justice or the local judicial authorities.

A competent court has to issue a decision referring the dispute to mediation at any stage of the case, whether by a proposal supported by the consent of the parties in dispute or upon their request or in implementation of the mediation agreement.

The law allows the mediator to withdraw from a case if there is a conflict of interest.

The draft law calls for a mediation agreement to be in writing to avoid any further complications.

ismail@khaleejtimes.com