Opening Remarks

[Music] your excellencies distinguished guests friends welcome to the Third Edition of resolve welcome to ad GM's Flagship dispute resolution Forum now nestled Where We Belong amongst the titans of Industry from across the world here in the amazing and ambitious asset Abu Dhabi day as part of Abu Dhabi Finance week on the day where we mingle and engage with one of the strongest Gatherings of global investment and financial leaders who are driven and Raz are focused on exploring the facets and power of financial human and technological Capital as a propeller for economic growth I say Where We Belong because dispute resolution is an asset undoubtedly it is an asset for these reasons in simple terms an asset is defined as anything that has current or future economic value to a business every single day you extraordinary advisors strenuous ously and strategically increase protect and recover the assets of your clients the titans of Industry amongst us their shareholders and organizations that they serve and they depend upon you for your Precision commitment unwavering Devotion to your art skill and capacity all of what you do is an asset you add economic value to a business by deploying your strategies and determination as you've heard the theme for this year's resolve is resilience we all know that is not a concept that is Limitless we have our limits and we must know our limits we cannot stray into enduring a harmful tolerance of adversity resilience is not only a measure of our ability to withstand challenges but also a capacity to adapt innovate and thrive in an increasingly complex world I am not here to lecture you that you must be more resilient that you are not prepared for the wave of disputes or are you that you are that you must use more technology that you are are doomed if you are not the Maestro of AI none of that I am here to tell you that we are ecstatic that you are with us today so that we can deliver for you an unparalleled opportunity to listen to leaders stories theories ideas crazy or traditional highlighting their resilience some of all or of which may be a circuit breaker for the future for your practice and career in whatever that may be you have heard us say on numerous occasions that resolve is all about pushing boundaries and confronting the most pressing issues shaping Global dispute resolution this is a stark reality now with some of the most complex and novel issues Weighing on the minds of those Titans and keeping them awake at night we searched high and low tested the temperature and spoke with so many of our generous supporters about what their clients thought were those issues the ones with tremors the ones that they are foreshadowing may require a shift in thinking and in resolution and so what you will hear today is an examination of the concept of resilience through the prism of four four significant topics that those clients have identified as having seismic activity AI restructuring and insolvency social harm from Big Tech and the one that weighs the most heavily on my mind and heart climate I want to share with you just a few statistics and a gamechanging event to support the anecdotal views of those Titans on just a few of those topics first AI a profound Global opportunity that comes with profound responsibilities AI is undoubtedly impactful we know that the global technology Market is projected to grow from around 31.6 billion US in 2024 to 63.6 billion US by 2032 close to double in just eight years this growth underscores your Monumental embracing of transformative Technologies and dare I say a preent view on the future power and might of technology in the legal sector and in your practices and to pause for a moment and speak from the perspective of an international Commercial Court about AI commercial courts commercial law and the rule of law will likely have a crucial part to play in whether and where AI contributes successfully or unsuccessfully in the world some in the industry may consider that that an unwelcome intervention by courts that will kill Innovation and creativity I don't think so I think it will lead to appropriate guard rails that will move and flex over time as Society grapples with the risks and the benefits second the rise of class actions against big tech for societal harm the sheer scale and complexity of these class actions have become jaw-dropping for instance Google's $62 million class action settlement in May this year over alleged tracking and storage of the mobile device user location data of nearly 250 million us users underscores the battle to uphold privacy rights in the face of these technological advances and according to the New York Times yesterday just last Saturday a lawsuit was filed against Apple in the US District Court in Northern California seeking more than us 1.2 billion ion Dollar in Damages to compensate a potential class of 2,680 victims for Apple's abandonment of a system in 2021 that was developed to discover abusive material according to the New York Times the lawsuit is the second of its kind against apple and points to increasing concern about its eyecloud allowing illegal material to be circulated without being as easily spotted as in other social media Services whilst those cases are being tackled in big Tech climate issues are becoming trickier the international court of justice has taken a significant step commencing hearings last week that range into this week involving 100 countries and international organiz organizations to Define States legal resp responsibilities concerning climate change under international law this initiative led by Pacific iseland Nations and youth activists seeks to establish obligations for emission reductions and support for affected communities with the icj's advisory opinion anticipated in 2025 its potential to shape Global Climate resilience and action cannot be overstable stated that is enough for me from now you have an incredible and tremendous day ahead of hearing the Titans in global industry not just legal share their thoughts and insights resolve 2024 remains true to the resolve brand of having panels split between leaders in law and leaders in all industry sectors so that we capture all voices to ensure we have balance reality and perspective in our discussion it just remains for me now to extend some profuse thanks and gratitude to those who have made resolve possible I am going to leave my team for personal thanks uh there are too many of them and I'll be here for another half an hour as I thank them but let me first thank um my chairman his Excellency Ahmed jum alabi who I cannot thank enough for his vision on aadfw being the perfect home for resolve for the reasons that I have mentioned to our event Partners our family the UAE Ministry of Justice Abu judicial Department the UAE federal courts and we're blessed to have two judges from those courts with us today and arbitrate ad our close Partnerships and collaboration mean means so much to us as we all Champion Abu Dhabi as a leader in international dispute resolution to our knowledge partner Lexus Nexus led by Vincent slingin whose energy knows no bounds and my massive and special thanks to our lead panelists all of whom who have traveled from afar from the US and Australia and our panelists amazing individuals many of whom have also come in from far away places and who have so generously given their time insights and knowledge into this discussion we know this is a huge commitment to us at this time of year for which we are so grateful and for which we cannot thank you enough finally to you all thank you for being here for believing in resolve and for making us shine you have no idea how much we value and cherish our relationships with you thank you [Applause] [Music]