Chris O'Donnell's legal victory not just a big payday

There was a time when an expat executive who had offended his Gulf government boss would only have to answer one question after quitting: "Window or aisle?"

Chris O'Donnell's victory in his courtroom battle against Nakheel represents more than a big payday for the former chief executive. It also shows that the legal route can be a viable one for foreigners in dispute with big government-backed companies. So the legal arguments of this particular case are not as interesting as its ultimate conclusion.

Mr O'Donnell has emerged as an unlikely winner from Dubai's property boom and bust, given the scale of the losses accumulated by his former company. Many of his contemporaries caught out by the collapse in prices were not so lucky. Some fled the country, while others were jailed.

It is significant that the former chief executive chose the Dubai World Tribunal within the DIFC Courts to hear his case. Nakheel would have preferred the outside Dubai courts and argued that the tribunal did not have the jurisdiction to deal with the dispute. The DIFC Courts are an important selling point for the DIFC as it seeks to attract foreign investment in an increasingly competitive market.

Yesterday's ruling tells other executives you don't necessarily need to leave when you fall out with a company as big as Nakheel.

That said, Mr O'Donnell was about as far away as he could have been when the decision to award him more than US$3 million (Dh11m) was handed down yesterday. His statement travelled all the way from New South Wales.

scronin@thenational.ae

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