Former English High Court judge Sir David Steel joins the tribunal, having been appointed earlier this week by Dubai’s ruler, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, according to a report on the web site of The Brief magazine.

Raft of claims

The body was launched three years ago and already includes Singapore judge Michael Hwang SC, fellow English judge, Sir John Chadwick and current chairman and the Chief Justice of the Dubai International Financial Centre Court, Sir Anthony Evans QC.
According to reports from the region, some 80 claims regarding the default of Dubai World have already been filed with the tribunal. At the start of the global financial crisis, the company effectively went bust, suspending repayments on nearly $60 billion of debt.
Sir David has also been a DIFC Court judge since last year. In London, he heads the arbitrator wing of the barristers’ set Quadrant Chambers, having been a Commercial and Admiralty Court judge for some 13 years prior to 2011.