Drafting the clause, and the seat trap that follows it
The ICC model clause is short and the temptation is to shorten it further. Three things should always appear: the institution, the seat, and the language. Number of arbitrators and governing law are usually worth adding.
The recurring UAE error is naming a city and assuming it identifies the institution. It does not — it fixes the seat, and the seat fixes the supervisory court. 'ICC arbitration in Dubai' places supervision with the onshore Dubai courts, applying the Federal Arbitration Law. If the parties wanted a common-law supervisory court they had to name DIFC or ADGM explicitly.
Authority is the second trap. UAE law treats agreement to arbitrate as a disposition rather than an ordinary act of management, so the signatory must have specific authority. A clause signed by someone without it is vulnerable years later, at the point of enforcement, when it is far too late to fix.
From Request to Award
The case begins with a Request for Arbitration filed with the Secretariat, setting out the claim, the relief and the arbitration agreement. The Answer follows, with any counterclaim. The Court then addresses constitution of the tribunal, prima facie jurisdiction where it is contested, and consolidation where more than one arbitration is on foot.
Once constituted, the tribunal draws Terms of Reference, holds a case management conference and sets the procedural timetable. Written submissions, document production, witness and expert evidence, and a hearing follow in the familiar sequence. The tribunal then submits a draft award for scrutiny before it is released.
The practical point for a UAE party: ICC procedure rewards preparation front-loaded into the Request and the Terms of Reference, because the issues are fixed early and adding to them later requires leave.
Terms of Reference — the ICC's distinguishing document
Within a short period of receiving the file the tribunal prepares Terms of Reference: the parties, their claims and relief sought, a list of issues to be determined unless the tribunal considers it inappropriate, the seat, and the procedural rules.
This is not a formality. The Terms of Reference frame the arbitration, and a claim not covered by them generally cannot be advanced later without the tribunal's authorisation. Parties who treat the drafting as administrative lose the chance to shape what the tribunal will decide.
The document is signed by the parties and the tribunal. A party that refuses to sign does not stop the arbitration — the Court approves it instead — but the refusal is noticed.
Scrutiny: what the Court actually checks
Before release, the Court reviews the draft award. It may lay down modifications as to form and draw the tribunal's attention to points of substance without affecting the tribunal's liberty of decision.
In practice this catches unaddressed claims, internal inconsistency, reasoning that does not support the dispositive section, and errors in costs. Awards are returned for correction, and this is why an ICC award takes longer to issue than an equivalent award elsewhere.
For enforcement it is an advantage. An award that has survived scrutiny is harder to attack on the grounds most commonly raised — failure to deal with an issue, inadequate reasons, internal contradiction — because a second body has already looked for exactly those defects.
Emergency arbitrator and the expedited procedure
Where relief cannot wait for a tribunal, the Rules provide for an emergency arbitrator, appointed within days, who can order interim and conservatory measures. The order binds the parties but is not an award, and enforcement depends on the courts of the place where relief is needed — in the UAE that generally means going to the court in parallel rather than relying on the order alone.
The expedited procedure applies automatically below a financial threshold, and by agreement above it. It compresses the timetable, typically dispenses with Terms of Reference, and usually means a sole arbitrator. Parties who want it above the threshold, or want it excluded below, must say so in the clause.
Costs, and the advance that stops the arbitration
ICC costs comprise the administrative expenses, the arbitrators' fees — both calculated ad valorem on the amount in dispute — and the parties' own legal costs. The Court fixes the advance on costs early, and it is substantial.
The mechanism that surprises people: the advance is payable in equal shares, and if the respondent does not pay, the claimant must cover the whole advance or the claim is not set in motion. A respondent with no intention of participating can therefore impose the entire funding burden on the claimant, who may recover it in the award but must find it first.
Against DIAC or arbitrateAD, ICC is generally the more expensive option at every level of claim. That cost buys scrutiny, an international panel and an award with wide recognition. Whether that is worth it depends on the counterparty and where enforcement will happen.
Enforcing an ICC award against UAE assets
An ICC award seated outside the UAE is a foreign award, recognised and enforced through the New York Convention, to which the UAE acceded in 2006. An award seated in the UAE is domestic and enforced under the Federal Arbitration Law; one seated in DIFC or ADGM is enforced through that jurisdiction's courts and can then be referred onward.
The grounds of resistance are the Convention grounds, and in UAE practice the two raised most often are invalidity of the arbitration agreement — usually the authority point — and public policy. Anticipating both in the enforcement papers is more effective than answering them after they are pleaded.
Where the debtor's assets sit onshore, routing enforcement through DIFC or ADGM first adds a step but often adds procedural certainty. The choice should follow the asset map rather than habit.
| ICC | DIAC | arbitrateAD | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Administered from | Paris, with regional case management | Dubai | Abu Dhabi |
| Award scrutiny | Yes — every award | No | No |
| Terms of Reference | Yes | No | No |
| Emergency arbitrator | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Relative cost | Highest | Moderate | Moderate |
| Typical use | Cross-border, high value | UAE-centred commercial | Abu Dhabi and government-linked |
Primary sources
The law and rules this page relies on. Links go to the issuing court, tribunal or legislator.
Frequently asked questions
What does 'ICC arbitration in Dubai' actually mean?
Almost certainly ICC rules with a Dubai seat — which puts the onshore Dubai courts in the supervisory role under the Federal Arbitration Law. Naming a city fixes the seat, not the institution's location; the ICC administers from Paris through its Secretariat and regional offices. If you wanted a common-law supervisory court you had to name DIFC or ADGM in the clause.
Why does an ICC award take longer to issue?
Because the Court scrutinises every draft award before release, and returns awards for correction. That is the trade: more time, against an award that has already been checked for unaddressed claims, internal inconsistency and reasoning that does not support the outcome — the grounds most commonly used to attack an award later.
What are Terms of Reference and do they matter?
They fix the parties, the claims, the relief and usually a list of issues. A claim outside them generally cannot be advanced later without the tribunal's authorisation, so the drafting is a chance to shape what the tribunal will decide. Treating it as administrative is a mistake parties make once.
The respondent is refusing to pay its share of the advance. What happens?
You pay the whole advance or the claim does not proceed. The advance is nominally payable in equal shares, so a respondent intending not to participate can shift the entire funding burden onto you. It is recoverable in the award, but you must find it first — and that should be priced in before filing.
Is ICC more expensive than DIAC or arbitrateAD?
Generally yes, at every level of claim. Administrative expenses and arbitrator fees are both calculated ad valorem. What the premium buys is scrutiny, an international panel and an award with the widest recognition. Whether that is worth it turns on the counterparty and where you will enforce.
Can an ICC emergency arbitrator order freeze assets in the UAE?
The emergency arbitrator can order interim and conservatory measures, and the order binds the parties. It is not an award, so enforcement depends on the court where the relief is needed. Against UAE assets that usually means applying to the court in parallel rather than relying on the order by itself.
How do I enforce an ICC award against a UAE company?
A foreign-seated award goes through the New York Convention; a UAE-seated one through the Federal Arbitration Law; a DIFC or ADGM-seated one through those courts, with the option to refer onward. Expect invalidity of the arbitration agreement — usually the signatory's authority — and public policy to be raised, and answer both in the papers rather than after.
Does the expedited procedure apply to our case?
Automatically below the financial threshold in the Rules, and by agreement above it. It compresses the timetable, usually dispenses with Terms of Reference and typically means a sole arbitrator. If you want it above the threshold, or want it excluded below, the clause has to say so.