Imagine a smart contract which requires two digital keys to unlock a payment or release an asset. Both parties to the contract hold a key, with a third held by the court. In the event of a dispute, the court rules in favour or one or other of the parties – and unlocks the contract at the same time.
This is just one of the ideas bouncing around the creation of the world’s first digital economy court (DEC), the latest initiative of the pioneering Dubai International Financial Centre Courts in the United Arab Emirates. The DEC was set up as a specialist division of the courts to ‘facilitate the efficient and modern resolution of digital economy disputes’. Other jurisdictions, not least in the UK, will be watching with interest.
The DIFC courts administer an English-language common law system alongside the UAE’s Arabic language civil law jurisdiction. It has spawned many…
