The work done at the Qatar International Court and Dispute Resolution Centre (QICDRC) in 2024 to build on what was hitherto our busiest year, namely 2023, was a huge achievement.
The undoubted highlight of the year was the QICDRC’s hosting of the 5th Full Meeting of the Standing Forum of International Courts (SIFoCC) in April 2024. Previous Full Meetings of SIFoCC were held in London, New York, Sydney and Singapore. It was a real pleasure and honour to host so many distinguished judges from across the world. We welcomed over 170 judges from close to 60 jurisdictions to what was an enormously enjoyable and productive Meeting at Qatar University. We were particularly honoured to host the Minister of Justice of Qatar – His Excellency Ibrahim bin Ali Al-Mohannadi – and the Chief Justice of Qatar – His Excellency Dr Hassan bin Lahdan Al-Hassan Al-Mohannadi. We are very grateful for their tremendous support. The feedback was overwhelming and positive. The Meeting confirmed Qatar’s important place in the international system of justice. I also wish to pay tribute to the Chief Executive Officer of the QICDRC, Faisal Al-Sahouti, and his hardworking team for their enormous contribution to the success.
On the legal front, this was yet another year of significant growth for the QICDRC. Building on the considerable increase in the number of judgments issued in 2023, the number increased by 20% in 2024. The cases heard at the QICDRC are of increasing complexity and are now forming a corpus of modern, pro-commerce, and valuable caselaw. The bench strength of the Registry was also increased in 2024 with the addition of two excellent members of that team, Muna Al-Kaabi and Mohammed Al Ansari, both of whom have already made considerable contributions under the guiding hand of the Registrar.
There were so many highlights in 2024 that it would be impossible to list them all here. Particularly pleasing was the launch of the QICDRC Legal Clinic – the first of its kind in the jurisdiction – which uses QICDRC Panel Law Firms to provide early advice and assistance to those who are unable to afford lawyers. This is a significant milestone in the administration of justice and promotion of the rule of law. I expect it to build on its early success year on year.
Two of our Judges retired at the end of 2024 – Justices Sir Bruce Robertson (New Zealand) and Lord Hamilton (Scotland). Sir Bruce has been a Judge of the Court since 2013, and Lord Hamilton joined us in 2015. They made significant contributions in the early years of the Court as it was finding its way as a new body which needed a set of first-class Judges to guide it in its infancy; in Sir Bruce and Lord Hamilton the Court found just that. Both made huge contributions in developing our Court’s commercial law in important areas that are critical to the smooth operation of international business and therefore investment in Qatar. We are hugely grateful for their distinguished service.
We are also proud to welcome two new Judges to the Court – Dr Talal El-Emadi (Dean of the Qatar University School of Law) and James Allsop AC (former Chief Justice of the Federal Court of Australia). We are very lucky to have these two outstanding legal minds strengthening our Bench, and I look forward to working with them.
However, 2024 did also bring great sadness. Our dear colleague – Justice Dr Rashid Al-Anezi – passed away in January of that year. He was a thoughtful and generous colleague and friend, not to mention a fine Judge who brought humanity and great intellect to his work. He made a huge contribution to the success of the QICDRC. He remains sorely missed by us all. It is right that I end this Message on this note, and I ask you for a moment to reflect on Justice Dr Rashid Al-Anezi and his contribution to the law worldwide.
