51¹ú²úÊÓƵ

De Montfort 51¹ú²úÊÓƵ (DMU) has been accused of ¡°illegally terminating¡± its contract with a company that helped establish its Dubai campus.

DMU had collaborated with United Arab Emirates-based Study World Education Holding Group, a private company, to build its Dubai branch campus, which commenced operations in September 2021.

In a letter to the DMU board of governors seen by Times Higher Education, Vidhya Vinod, the founder of Study World, claimed this partnership was ¡°unlawfully¡± terminated in April 2024 because DMU did not obtain a formal court order as is required under Dubai law.

¡°Despite my repeated efforts over one year to achieve an amicable resolution, including multiple attempts at dialogue and negotiation, the 51¹ú²úÊÓƵ has shown persistent reluctance to engage constructively, including declining all offers of mediation,¡± she said.

DMU, which has since set up a new campus in Dubai,?denies wrongdoing, saying it ended the partnership in accordance with the terms in the agreement with the company.?

Alongside the outpost in Internet City, the Leicester-based university also recently established a London campus. The university also has outposts in Kazakhstan and Cambodia.

Study World claims it invested over ?42 million in the Dubai campus, despite ¡°DMU¡¯s low league table position¡±, which will require reimbursement.

The firm accuses DMU of unethical practices and misleading behaviour by taking ¡°premeditated steps to force Study World into a position of contractual breach¡±.

It claimed DMU declined all opportunities for mediation and for meetings between the legal teams and has ¡°engaged in deliberately obstructive behaviour for more than one year¡±.

¡°I have not escalated this matter publicly despite repeated media requests to do so both in the UAE and UK but regrettably have now been left with no other choice but to write to you personally and to share the gravity of my concerns with the regulators,¡± wrote Vinod.

Nigel Healey, professor of international higher education at the 51¹ú²úÊÓƵ of Limerick, told THE that it appears there has been a ¡°blame game¡± occurring which has gradually destroyed trust in the relationship.

Likening it to the English civil wars of the Roses, he said that relationship has ¡°broken down in a very spectacular way now¡±.

¡°DMU seems to feel it¡¯s holding all the cards because the partner¡¯s made all the investments now upfront, but they¡¯ve got a limited liability of ?3 million, and they think they can walk away from it¡­It looks like it¡¯s going to be quite a battle.¡±

Healey said a common issue in transnational education partnerships is which country¡¯s courts will rule on any fallouts.

¡°DMU, like a lot of British university contracts, is written to be interpreted under English law by English courts, and the partner is claiming that the Dubai courts will seek jurisdiction in this case because all the activity is in Dubai¡­And that¡¯s been an ongoing tension for a lot of [disputes].¡±

It was recently revealed that about 80 staff at DMU are set to be made redundant in an effort to save ?8 million.

In a statement, DMU said the letter from Study World was ¡°inaccurate¡± in a number of ways but did not specify which. It said that, following legal advice, it exited the partnership in accordance with the provisions of its agreement with Study World ¨C and informed regulators in both the UK and the UAE of the change.

¡°Thanks to the hard work of our staff and students, DMU has since set up a successful and thriving new campus in Dubai Internet City.¡±

Study World was approached for comment.

patrick.jack@timeshighereducation.com