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10 - 14 NOVEMBER 2025

Schedules: Midday

Preserving Legacy through Effective Dispute Resolution: Arbitration & Family Businesses in the GCC

Family businesses form an integral part of the GCC region’s economic system. Over the past decade, family businesses have been facing increasing and unique challenges, part of which have flowed over to a foray of dispute resolution forums. More specifically, disputes have revolved around issue pertaining to generational transitions and successions, shareholders’ conflicts, and governance issues, amongst other things. This panel will explore how arbitration can serve as a culturally-sensitive and confidential mechanism to effectively resolve intra-family and commercial disputes while preserving both legacy and relationships.

Key Discussion Points:

  • Arbitrability of Family Business Disputes: Navigating local laws, public policy, and the scope of arbitration clauses in family constitutional documents and shareholder agreements.
  • Balancing Confidentiality and Transparency: Why institutional arbitration may be better suited than courts for handling sensitive internal disputes.
  • Governance and Succession Planning: How dispute resolution mechanisms are evolving in modern family charters.Enforcement Challenges & Regional Nuances: Lessons from GCC jurisdictions on the recognition and enforcement of awards involving family entities.
  • Case Studies: Insights from actual disputes involving family businesses with local activities or or cross-border investments.

Arbitration and the Courts: Competition vs Collaboration

This forum hosted by Charles Russell Speechlys will address how the onshore courts and free-zone (DIFC and ADGM) courts in the UAE are approaching arbitration-related matters in recent jurisprudence and what that means for the symbiotic relationship between arbitration and litigation in the UAE. The forum will also look further afield at the development and practice of international commercial courts, including those in Bahrain, Kazakhstan, and Singapore in relation to arbitration and their impact on the arbitration-litigation ecosystem. Registration is required as spaces are limited.

Litigation Funding & Enforcing Legal Costs Awards: Important Developments in Commercial and Investor-State Arbitration and Litigation

A ‘cradle to grave’ review of important recent developments, dealing with terms of funding agreements, security for costs, costs management, securing/opposing costs awards, and matters of quantification;

How an effective strategy towards litigation funding and legal costs can positively affect the substantive outcome;

Common pitfalls which reduce the recovery of legal costs and put pressure on the lawyer/client relationship;

Maximising or minimising costs recovery after the substantive award; and

How the shifting landscape in onshore litigation funding may influence arbitral institutions and tribunals across EMEA and APAC.

From Conflict to Resolution: Managing Disputes in Mega Infrastructure Projects

This networking lunch and panel discussion on Dispute Resolution in Mega Infrastructure Projects will bring together leading experts to share strategies for managing multi-stakeholder claims, maintaining complex programmes, and mitigating risks before they escalate. Designed for professionals in construction, law, and project management, this interactive session will provide real-world insights and proven approaches to safeguard budgets, optimize time, and strengthen stakeholder relationships on large-scale developments.

Enforcement and Challenge of Arbitral Awards in the Mainland UAE: Seven Years and One Round of Amendments Later do provisions of the Federal Arbitration Law 2018 support or hinder Enforcement?

Several provisions of the Federal Arbitration Law 2018 (FAL) be it those governing the legal capacity of the signatories of the arbitration agreement, public order and morality or the omission to allow tribunals to grant legal costs have in recent times led to challenges to arbitral awards in the mainland UAE. The latest 2023 amendments to the FAL have also not attempted to address the issues that provisions of the 2018 legislation posit.

Considering the same, the Panel will discuss the key changes that could benefit the FAL. Additionally, the Panel will discuss whether despite the shortcomings in the legislation whether the judiciary in the mainland UAE is driving a pro or anti enforcement stance for arbitral awards. Lastly, whether this is influencing or hindering the mainland UAE’s perception as an ‘arbitration-friendly’ jurisdiction.

Interactive YIAG Tylney-style seminar

The Young International Arbitration Group (YIAG) are organising a free interactive seminar on topical issues in international arbitration. The format will follow the YIAG’s traditional flagship Tylney Hall symposia, designed to be interactive and to provide an opportunity to share news and views on developments in the field of international commercial arbitration and alternative dispute resolution. Delegates will be invited to submit topics for discussion in advance, and will be asked to introduce their questions on the day. The topics will then be open for debate under the guidance of the session’s co-chairs.

Developing an Arbitral Space for Small to Medium Commercial Transactions in Africa

This panel will explore how to make arbitration more accessible, affordable, and effective for Africa’s small and medium enterprises (SMEs)—the backbone of the continent’s economy but often excluded from formal dispute resolution systems. Experts will examine legal, institutional, and technological barriers SMEs face, and discuss practical solutions including simplified arbitration rules, regional arbitration centers, online dispute resolution (ODR), and capacity-building initiatives. Drawing on case studies and global best practices, the session will identify strategies to create a scalable, inclusive, and harmonized arbitral ecosystem that supports cross-border trade and intra-African commerce under frameworks like the AfCFTA.

Choosing Your Forum: The Foreign Investor’s Enforcement Toolkit

This event will examine the key differences between onshore, offshore, and free zone jurisdictions in the region. We will explore the role of the DIFC as a “conduit court” for the enforcement of foreign judgments and arbitral awards, and compare its approach to that of other prominent arbitration courts. The discussion will highlight the advantages and disadvantages of each option from the perspective of foreign investors.

In addition, the event will address recent trends in judicial intervention and their impact on enforcement timelines and costs. The session aims to provide practical insights for investors considering their dispute resolution and enforcement strategies in the region

The Dichotomy of Confidentiality and Transparency in Treaty-Based Investment Contracts

This panel will engage in a comprehensive exploration of one of the most pressing and evolving debates in international arbitration: the tension between the duty to protect confidential information and the increasing demands for transparency in treaty-based investment contracts. The discussion will be structured into three interconnected parts, offering a multi-layered legal analysis that spans the domains of public international law, international investment law, and private international law.

Part I – In Respect of Public International Law:
This section outlines the international legal framework governing transparency in treaty-based arbitration, focusing on key instruments like the UNCITRAL Rules on Transparency and the Mauritius Convention (Entered into force 2017), as well as provisions in modern investment treaties. It examines how transparency obligations interact with principles like state sovereignty and public interest, raising questions about the limits of transparency versus domestic confidentiality and sensitive information.

Part II – In Respect of International Investment:
This part analyzes confidentiality and transparency within investor–state contracts and disputes. It highlights legitimate reasons for confidentiality (e.g., trade secrets, state security) while acknowledging challenges to accountability in matters of public interest. The section reviews recent arbitral cases balancing these interests and notes a trend toward treaties that promote transparency while protecting sensitive data.

Part III – In Respect of Private International Law:
Focusing on private law, this section explores how contractual confidentiality clauses and procedural rules affect transparency. It discusses the impact of governing law and arbitration seat on confidentiality standards and how public international treaty obligations may override private agreements, especially in disputes involving both public and private concerns. It highlights the delicate balance that parties and tribunals must maintain between transparency and confidentiality.

Overall Objective:
Through these three perspectives, the panel aims to provide a nuanced and comparative understanding of the dichotomy between confidentiality and transparency in treaty-based investment contracts. It will offer insights into the legal foundations, policy considerations, and procedural strategies that can help reconcile these competing imperatives, ensuring both the protection of legitimate private interests and the promotion of trust in the international dispute resolution system

Enforcement Battlefield: What Actually Happens After the Award?

Many arbitration teams underestimate the complexity of enforcing awards in the UAE. This session will bring clarity to the post-award enforcement landscape and highlight the strategic role of local counsel in overcoming obstacles. The discussion is designed to provide international firms, in-house counsel, and practitioners with practical insights into navigating enforcement from paper to payment.

Key Topics:

  • Filing for recognition and enforcement
  • Defending against public policy objections
  • Setting aside applications and post-award delays
  • Navigating practical challenges in enforcement
  • The role of local counsel in closing the loop