Interim measures in UAE arbitration

• A UAE court can freeze assets before a tribunal exists, and applying does not waive the arbitration agreement.
• A precautionary attachment lapses after eight days unless the applicant files the substantive proceedings and proves it.
• A DIAC emergency arbitrator can be appointed within one day, but the order binds the parties and not banks or registries.
• DIAC arbitrations default to a DIFC seat, which changes which court supervises the case.

Which forum can order what before the tribunal exists

Federal Law No. 6 of 2018 gives the power to order urgent relief to two forums at once. Article 21 allows the tribunal to order interim or precautionary measures on a party's request or on its own initiative. The Ministry of Economy publishes the full text. Article 18 allows the court to order interim or conservatory measures for arbitrations that are running or contemplated. Either the tribunal or a party can ask for them. Article 18(3) settles the point that worries most claimants. The arbitration continues, and going to court for protective relief does not waive the arbitration agreement. Our arbitration lawyers in Dubai choose the route on the facts of each case rather than by default.

The timing problem is the reason the choice matters. A tribunal cannot order anything before it exists, and constituting a three-member tribunal takes weeks. Assets move faster than that.

The eight day trap in a precautionary attachment

Article 247 of Federal Decree-Law No. 42 of 2022 lets a creditor apply to the summary judge to attach the debtor's assets. The application can be heard without notice, which is the whole point where the risk is dissipation. The debt has to be for a specific and ascertainable amount. The applicant also needs a document evidencing a debt that is due, or a judgment or award that is not yet enforceable.

Then comes the deadline that catches people. Where the attachment is granted before substantive proceedings start, the applicant has eight days to file those proceedings and produce evidence of the filing. Miss it and the attachment falls away. Where the merits belong to a tribunal, the substantive step is the request for arbitration, so the arbitration has to be commenced inside that window. Treat the two applications as one exercise and prepare the request for arbitration before applying to the summary judge.

Two further points shape the tactics. The court may require a bank guarantee, a letter of indemnity or other security before granting the order. An attachment also creates no lien and no priority over the frozen asset. It holds the position without improving the creditor's rank against other creditors. Applicants often seek a travel ban against individual respondents at the same time.

What a DIAC emergency arbitrator can and cannot reach

The DIAC Arbitration Rules 2022 took effect on 21 March 2022. They apply to requests filed after that date, whatever the date of the arbitration clause. Under Appendix II, a party needing emergency relief applies to the Centre with or after its request for arbitration. Where the Arbitration Court is satisfied on a prima facie basis, DIAC seeks to appoint the emergency arbitrator within one day. The application can proceed without notice where the applicant reasonably believes that notice would defeat it and the procedural law of the seat permits it.

The limit is the source of the power. An emergency arbitrator draws authority from the arbitration agreement, so the order binds the parties to that agreement. It does not bind a bank holding the respondent's account, a land department, or a company registrar. If the relief needed is a freeze that a third party must implement, an emergency arbitrator is the wrong tool.

Enforcement is the second question. Under Article 21(4), a party holding an interim order may ask the court to enforce it. That needs the tribunal's written authorisation, and the request runs on a fifteen day clock. That provision refers to the arbitral tribunal. Whether an onshore court will treat an emergency arbitrator the same way has not been settled. Plan on voluntary compliance, or on backing the order with a separate court application.

The seat decides which court supervises the case

Under the 2022 Rules the seat is the DIFC unless the parties agree otherwise. Many contracts say nothing about the seat, and their drafters assume onshore Dubai. The default answer sends supervision to the DIFC Court instead.

That changes the toolkit. The DIFC and ADGM courts grant freezing orders on common law principles, including worldwide freezing orders, and they bind third parties who have notice. Onshore, no equivalent injunction exists, and the precautionary attachment is the working substitute. An award or order then needs the crossover route into onshore execution. We cover it in our guide to enforcing a DIFC judgment in mainland Dubai.

Check the arbitration clause before choosing a route, and check it again when the dispute is still hypothetical. The clause decides the answer, and a party that discovers the seat during a crisis has already lost days. Our comparison of DIAC and ICC arbitration for Dubai disputes covers the drafting choices.

Choosing between the court and the emergency arbitrator

Four questions usually decide it.

Does the relief need a third party to act? Bank accounts, property registrations and share registers all require an order the third party will accept, which points to the court. Is the harm about conduct between the parties, such as calling a bond, disclosing confidential material or removing plant from a site? A tribunal or an emergency arbitrator can address that. Does the applicant need surprise? Both routes allow applications without notice, with the court route more predictable in practice. Does confidentiality matter more than reach? Court files are less protected than arbitral proceedings.

Nothing prevents using both. A claimant can attach assets through the summary judge and pursue conduct-based relief before the emergency arbitrator. The eight day window still has to be met.

What an interim measure costs the applicant

Article 21(2) lets a tribunal require the applicant to provide security for the costs of the measure. The applicant may also bear the damages caused by enforcing it, if the tribunal later decides it was not entitled to the measure. Onshore courts apply a similar logic through the security they may demand before granting an attachment.

Wrongful attachment carries real exposure. A respondent whose accounts are frozen without proper grounds can claim the resulting loss, and in a trading business that figure grows quickly. Assess the strength of the underlying claim before applying, not afterwards. Once constituted, the tribunal may modify, suspend or terminate a measure it ordered. That gives a route to correct an order that has become disproportionate.

What to do in the first days of an urgent case

• Read the arbitration clause and identify the seat before deciding anything else.
• Identify the specific assets, their location and the institution that holds them.
• Draft the request for arbitration alongside the attachment application, not after it.
• Diarise the eight day deadline from the date of the attachment order.
• Decide whether the relief needs a third party to act, which rules the emergency arbitrator out.
• Budget for the security the court or tribunal may require.

Onshore judicial practice on tribunal-ordered measures is still developing, and the enforceability of emergency arbitrator orders before onshore courts remains untested. Parties should check the current position before relying on either. Once the measure is in place, the file moves to the merits and then to enforcement. Our guide to enforcing a UAE arbitral award covers the next stage, and setting aside an award covers the challenge route. Legal advice may be required to assess which route fits a particular dispute and asset profile.