Dubai, United Arab Emirates, 24th November 2010: Mark Beer, Registrar of the DIFC Courts, Dubai International Financial Centre's (DIFC) independent, common law judicial system will discuss the importance of the Middle East to global economic development, and the role the judiciary must play in this fast growing region at the upcoming World Economic Forum Summit on the Global Agenda, being held in Dubai from 29 November to 1 December 2010. The Summit is a unique gathering of the Members of the Forum's Network of Global Agenda Councils, the world's most relevant thought leaders from academia, business, government and society.
Beer will be addressing the Global Agenda Council for the International Legal System, to which he was appointed as a member earlier this year, as the sole member of from the Middle East. The DIFC Courts are also the sole Court system represented on the council.
The DIFC Courts' Registrar was also recently appointed representative for the Middle East region for the International Association for Court Administration (IACA). The appointment took place following IACA's Conference for the Western Hemisphere in Trinidad, where Beer spoke on the same topic, saying: "As foreign direct investment flows and employment opportunities return, the courts across the region will play a fundamental role in ensuring healthy growth. Potential investors and global multinationals looking to locate headquarters in the Middle East will be looking for a sound legal infrastructure that offers the strength and choice of legal and judicial services that they are accustomed to elsewhere in the world."
The IACA conference was attended by representatives from the US, UK, Turkey, Rwanda, Australia, Mexico, Yugoslavia, Canada, Haiti, Brazil, Jamaica, Costa Rica, and World Bank representatives from Africa, and discussed court innovations, alternative approaches to justice, commercial justice trends of the Western Hemisphere, the development of the Latin American rule of law, the challenge of crafting accessible and sustainable justice systems, and the future of international and regional tribunals.
Commenting on the involvement of the DIFC Courts in these international conferences and councils, Beer said: "I am enormously proud of the DIFC Courts and what it has achieved in such a short period of time. The fact the DIFC Courts' work has been recognised internationally by IACA and the World Economic Forum is even more gratifying, and I am honoured to be appointed to work with such prestigious organisations. Through collaboration and knowledge transfer I believe that together we can bring about further progress in the regional and Global legal sector."
During the three-day World Economic Forum Summit, over 700 participants will engage in interactive workshops and sessions to set priorities for the most compelling ideas to improve the state of the world and identify the latest trends, risks and innovative solutions to address the world's challenges. The outcomes of the Summit will be integrated in the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2011 in Davos for further discussion and action.