Summary of Changes to Part 44 of the Rules of the DIFC Courts (RDC) on Appeals following Public Consultation in January 2017
The main changes are as follows:
Procedure
- Appellants are now required to first make their application for permission to appeal to the lower Court: either (i) orally at the hearing at which the decision to be appealed was made; or (ii) in an appellant’s notice [see new RDC 44.6].
- The lower Court may refer an application for permission to appeal to the appeal Court for a decision. [see new RDC 44.8].
- Where the lower Court refuses to give permission to appeal, a further (second) application for permission to appeal may be made to the appeal Court in an appellant’s notice [see new RDC 44.9].
- The appellant now has 21 days after the date of the decision appealed against in which to file the appellant’s notice, where the lower Court has made no other direction [see new RDC 44.10]
- The Respondent has now been given an opportunity to make submissions in opposition to permission to appeal within 21 days of the service upon him of the appellant’s notice (see new RDC 44.14]. The lower Court or the appeal Court will normally allow the respondent his costs of an application for permission to appeal if permission to appeal is refused [see new RDC 44.25]
- An application for permission to appeal not made orally to the lower Court at the hearing will ordinarily be decided without an oral hearing [see new RDC 44.16], although the appellant may request that the application for permission to appeal be considered at an oral hearing, supported by grounds as to why it would be in the interests of justice to do so [new RDC 44.17].
- No possibility anymore for a party to request any decision of the Registrar or single Judge refusing permission to appeal without a hearing to be reviewed by the Court of Appeal at an oral hearing [previous RDC 44.150].
Documents to be filed
- The appellant’s notice must include or be accompanied by grounds of appeal and a skeleton argument (see new RDC 44.29 and 44.30), with the option of filing the grounds of appeal and skeleton argument 21 days later, where to do so earlier would be impractical.
- Where the application for permission to appeal is to the lower Court, only any witness statement and affidavit in support must be filed, on the basis that the lower Court has necessary familiarity (new RDC 44.32(1)).
- Where the application is referred to the appeal Court or is a second appellant’s notice to the appeal Court, limited documents are to be filed – with the key being what is necessary to enable the appeal Court to decide whether or not to grant permission (as the appeal Court will not have the lower Court’s familiarity but not everything necessary to decide the appeal needs to be filed (see new RDC 44.32(2) and 44.33);
- Where permission is not necessary or has been granted, full documents necessary to decide the appeal must be filed. The appeal bundle is now only needed for the appeal itself [see new RDC 44.40, note the reference to necessary to decide the appeal as distinct from necessary to decide permission to appeal.]
- The single judge’s powers under RDC 44.126 have also been extended.
The post DIFC Courts – Amended Part 44 of the Rules of the DIFC Courts on Appeals – Summary of Main Changes appeared first on DIFC Courts.