Dubai reveals plan to create World’s First ‘Court of the Blockchain’

Dubai seeks to become the frontrunner in legal tech and judicial innovation by creating the world's first "Court of the Blockchain".

In their efforts to become the frontrunner in legal tech and judicial innovation, the Dubai International Financial Center (DIFC) partners with Smart Dubai to develop the world's first "Court of the Blockchain".

The partnership will explore a blockchain-powered judiciary process, which will help in verifying the court judgements for cross-border enforcement. The project will start with trying to streamline and improve the efficiency of the process by eliminating manual tasks that can lead to document duplications.

In the future, the project is looking at solving bigger and more complex issues, as the release stated, "Future research will combine expertise and resources to investigate handling disputes arising out of private and public blockchains, with regulation and contractual terms encoded within the smart contract."

The "Court of the Blockchain" project is part of the country's goal to digitize all types of government services. Quoting the director general of the Smart Dubai Office, Dr. Aisha Bint Butti Bin Bishr, "The emirate has become a global trailblazer in embracing advanced technologies and steeling them towards the safety, comfort and happiness of our city’s residents and visitors."

Furthermore, she added, "One of the most notable of these innovations is Blockchain, where the Dubai Blockchain Strategy seeks to run 100% of applicable government transactions on Blockchain by 2020."

According to Coinwire, many government bodies in Dubai have announced their blockchain-based projects to support the Blockchain by 2020 goal. Last May, the Department of Economic Development announced their plan to develop "a commercial business registry platform which utilizes blockchain technology", whereas Dubai's Immigration and Visa Department announced their plan to create blockchain-based passports that can eliminate manual checks at the country's international airports.