Answer ... Court proceedings are generally public and are conducted online. Certain cases, such as family matters, are held in private. There is no option to request the courts to make hearings private. However, in certain cases where a court or government decision refers the case to a committee or tribunal for judgment, the hearings become private.
Article 13(2) of DIFC Law 10/2004 states that: “All proceedings before the Courts shall be … open to the public unless otherwise conducted by the presiding Judge in the interest of justice.” Therefore, DIFC court proceedings are open to the public; however, most proceedings are now conducted online.
Further, in the DIFC courts, submissions and documents pertaining to the court proceedings are uploaded through a secure and confidential electronic platform on the e-registry platform. These documents are only visible to the parties to the court proceedings and their legal representatives, and not to any third parties, in order to maintain their confidentiality.
Pursuant to Article 98(1) of the ADGM Courts, Civil Evidence, Judgments, Enforcement and Judicial Appointments Regulations 2015, all ADGM court proceedings are held in public; however, this is subject to certain factors that are set out in Articles 98(2) and (3) of the regulations.
Pursuant to Article 98(2), the ADGM courts have the power to make special arrangements to accommodate the public where they consider it appropriate to do so.
Further, Article 98(3) provides that the ADGM courts may direct that court proceedings be held in private where:
(a) publicity would defeat the object of the hearing; (b) it involves matters relating to national security; (c) it involves confidential information (including information relating to personal financial matters) and publicity would damage that confidentiality; (d) a private hearing is necessary to protect the interests of a party or witness; (e) it is a hearing of an application made without notice and it would be unjust to any respondent for there to be a public hearing; (f) it involves uncontentious matters arising in the administration of trusts; or (g) the Court considers this to be necessary, in the interests of justice.
Additionally, the identity of any party or witness to the court proceedings may not be disclosed by an order of the ADGM court in circumstances where the ADGM court considers that non-disclosure is necessary:
- to protect the interests of that relevant party or witness; or
- in the interests of justice.
Like the DIFC courts, the ADGM courts have their own e-registry portal through which documents relating to court proceedings can be uploaded and maintained in a confidential manner. These are visible only to the parties to the court proceedings and their legal representatives, and not to any third party.