The property recession in Dubai has led to a swarm of lawsuits in the courts, especially the specialised property court that was set up in 2008. Many of these cases are arduous and expensive affairs. An investor can spend more than Dh30,000 just to file a case because of lawyer costs, translation of legal documents and court fees.

Photo caption: Lothar Hardt invested heavily across five of Damac's property developments in Dubai. Randi Sokoloff / The National

All the while, Dubai lawyers have generally avoided the DIFC Courts, which are cheaper and administered in the English language. Until now. Ludmila Yamalova, a lawyer at Al Sayyah Advocates and Legal Consultants, has filed a case in the courts on behalf of a German investor who is demanding a full refund from Damac Properties because it allegedly didn't live up to its contractual obligations. Read the details of the case here. It's an interesting test case for the DIFC - the only argument for holding the trial there is that one of the buildings Mr Hardt invested in is Park Towers, which is within the borders of the financial zone. The court has different laws and judges from the rest of Dubai, so any rulings favouring investors could lead to a rush of similar cases against developers in the DIFC.

The DIFC Courts registry say that Damac has been served with the papers and "accepted service", meaning they will represent themselves against the claim. Damac's legal team is contesting that the case should not be in the DIFC Courts, so it will be an interesting case to watch in the coming weeks.