DUBAI, Aug. 15 (Xinhua) -- DIFC Courts, the English-language common law judiciary in the Dubai International Financial Center (DIFC), said on Tuesday that the total value of cases hit 7.5 billion dirhams (2.04 billion U.S. dollars) in the first six months of 2017, up 118 percent from last year.
DIFC Courts said the sharp increase was attributed to a particularly large arbitration case while the underlying trend for case values posts "stable" growth.
The workload of the main Court of First Instance, including arbitration-related cases and counter claims, grew 57 percent year-on-year in the first six months of 2017, said the courts.
DIFC is the biggest internationally accepted banking district home to 457 authorised firms and two markets.
"The first half of 2017 saw the DIFC Courts serve big business, small firms and individuals seeking justice with equal consideration," said Mark Beer, co-chief executive and registrar general of the DIFC Courts.
In recent years, Beer spearheaded the globalization of the DIFC Courts, the judgements of which are "regarded in all countries with the exception of DPRK and Turkmenistan."
According to Beer, the DIFC Courts pay high attention to efficiency in order to ensure the handling of disputes within an appropriate timeframe, because "delayed justice is denied justice."
The DIFC Courts have established one of the world's strongest enforcement regimes with jurisdictions including the Commercial Court of England and Wales, the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, and the Shanghai High People's Court in China.
The collaboration with China "made DIFC Courts the first commercial court in the world which runs a connection with a court in the Chinese mainland," Beer said.
DIFC Courts said it will introduce a specialist Technology and Construction Division (TCD) in October.
Under the scheme, a claim may be brought as a TCD case if it involves "technically complex" issues or questions, where a specialized judge is appointed to oversee the disputes handled by the division.
