Tribunal Appointed Experts Are Required To Take The Oath

This article analyses the recent decision of the Dubai Court of Cassation in case No. 1406 of 2023, Commercial Appeal, which confirmed the decision of the Dubai Court of Appeal in setting aside an arbitral award because the Arbitral Tribunal appointed expert was not administered an oath.

Facts

The parties had referred their dispute to DIAC arbitration concerning a claim for payments arising out of a commercial contract.

There were various grounds for appeal submitted, including waiver of the arbitration agreement, and a lack of impartiality and independence of the arbitral tribunal amongst many other grounds. This article is not concerned with these other grounds of appeal as the Dubai Court of Cassation ultimately dealt with the question of whether an arbitral award ought to be set aside due to a failure for the Tribunal appointed expert to take an oath.