Henry Reid successful co-counsel in Al Ammari v ICD, (Decision No. 2025/01) in the Islamic Development Bank Group Administrative Tribunal (“IsDBGAT”) in Jeddah

Henry Reid, led by Alex Haines of 4 Pump Court, represented the applicant at the final hearing in November 2024 in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, following the success of the jurisdiction and admissibility judgment handed down in February 2024 (Decision No. 2024/04).

Henry, having successfully appeared alone in the Jurisdiction and Admissibility judgment, co- represented the applicant against the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (“ICD”) in a termination case in before the IsDBGAT sitting en banc. The Applicant challenged the Respondent’s decision to terminate his employment as the Director of the Internal Audit Department.

The Tribunal agreed with the Applicant that the termination had been effectuated by ICD’s CEO and that the decision “was, for all intents and purposes, an administrative decision and not a ‘governance’ decision”. In its judgment, the Tribunal also addressed ex parte filings and the production of documents. The Tribunal awarded damages and costs against the Respondent.

The IsDBGAT

The IsDBGAT, operational from early 2022, hears cases brought by international civil servants who work at the IsDBG which is comprised of the Islamic Development Bank (“IsDB”), Islamic Research & Training Institute (“IRTI”), Islamic Corporation for Insurance of Investment and Export Credit (“ICIEC”), International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (“ITFC”), and ICD.

The Administrative Tribunal is a judicial body that functions independently of the IsDBG; its independence is guaranteed in its Statute and Rules of Procedure adopted in June 2020 and February 2022 respectively. The Tribunal is composed of five judges, all of whom are nationals of member states of one or more of the IsDBG institutions. Unusually for international judicial bodies of international organisations, Sharia applies (as well as the institutional texts of the IsDBG and international administrative law).

Find out more

Henry Reid’s practice covers a wide array of commercial, corporate and financial services matters with an emphasis on commercial litigation, contentious and non-contentious financial services, sanctions, banking and finance, fintech and regulatory investigations. Henry is routinely instructed to advise on contentious and non-contentious matters related to sanctions and anti-money laundering regimes in the UK, US, EU and certain Crown Dependencies. Henry routinely presents on the UK sanction regime matters including in 2024, at the Georgian Bar Council’s International Law Day in Tblisi and to the Astana Financial Services Authority (“AFSA”) at the Kazakah Astana International Financial Centre (“AIFC”). 

To find out more, contact Lexie Johnson on + 44 (0) 207 427 0801 or Andy Hunter on +44 (0)20 7427 4905 for a confidential discussion.

News 20 Feb, 2025