Foreword

It gives me particular pleasure to introduce A Guide to the DIAC Arbitration Rules, the first monograph of its kind devoted to an arbitral institution in the Arab world. That this work appears within Oxford University Press’ international arbitration list is, in my view, a recognition that the Dubai International Arbitration Centre (the ‘DIAC’) has reached a level of institutional maturity and international relevance that merits serious, sustained study. I have had the privilege of participating in DIAC’s transformation over the past two decades, including my tenure as chairman of its Board of Trustees. The Centre’s development into the leading arbitral institution in the region did not occur by coincidence. It required governance reform, strategic clarity, and an openness to global standards without abandoning regional identity. Today, whether one looks at case registration numbers, the aggregate value of disputes administered, or the diversity of users appearing before it, DIAC stands clearly at the forefront of arbitration in the Arab world. More significantly, it has become a credible global competitor to institutions of far longer lineage.