Barrister; Year of Call 1996
Dubai-based English Barrister | DIFC Courts Advocate | International Arbitration Counsel and Arbitrator | CEDR-Accredited Mediator
Sean Yates is a Dubai-based English barrister and international arbitrator with 30 years’ legal experience, including 20 years living and working in the UAE. A registered DIFC Courts practitioner (Part II), he acts as lead counsel in high-value commercial disputes and international arbitrations centred on the UAE and the wider Gulf. His principal areas of practice include construction and infrastructure, real estate, energy and natural resources, maritime disputes, shareholder disputes and civil fraud.
Sean has particular experience of urgent and arbitration-related court proceedings, including worldwide freezing orders, Chabra relief, interim injunctions, jurisdictional challenges and applications concerning the enforcement and setting aside of arbitral awards. He acts in disputes governed by UAE, DIFC and English law and in arbitrations conducted under the DIAC, ICC, LCIA and DIFC-LCIA Rules.
He also accepts appointments as sole and co-arbitrator, and is a CEDR-accredited mediator. His current and recent appointments include substantial construction, shareholder, real-estate and infrastructure disputes seated in Dubai and the DIFC. His earlier in-house experience in Dubai gives him practical insight into project delivery, FIDIC contracting, real-estate development and the commercial pressures affecting clients operating in the region.
Sean regularly acts for developers, contractors, employers, project owners, operators, shareholders, investors and family-owned businesses across the region.
FCIArb – Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators
CEDR (Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution) – Accredited Mediator
Former Elected Committee Member of Ciarb UAE Branch (2022–2025)
DIAC Arbitrator Panel member
Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) Arbitration Centre, Panel of Arbitrators
Tashkent International Arbitration Centre (TIAC) Arbitrator Reserve Panel member
Saudi Center for Commercial Arbitration Arbitrator Roster
British Virgin Islands International Arbitration Centre (BVI IAC) Arbitrator Panel Member
Russian Arbitration Center (Russian Institute of Modern Arbitration), Arbitrator Panel Member
Registered Practitioner (Part II), DIFC Courts, Dubai
University of Birmingham, PhD Law candidate, researching the emergence of new international commercial courts and their relationship with their domestic courts and with international arbitration
University of Northumbria, LLM, International Commercial Law
University of Northumbria, Diploma, Commercial Law
Inns of Court School of Law, Bar Vocational Examination
Westminster University, Common Professional Examination
New College, Oxford University, M.A. (Oxon.)