The court structure and jurisdictional regimes of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are complex. The UAE is a federation of seven emirates, each of which being its own jurisdiction for matters devolved upon the emirates under the UAE Constitution. Three of the emirates operate their own court system (Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Ras Al Khaimah), with the remainder relying on the federal court structure. In addition, two of the emirates – Dubai and Abu Dhabi – have established financial free zones within their territories. These financial free zones, that is, the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) and Abu Dhabi Global Markets (ADGM), are separate jurisdictions from the UAE (and from the emirates, including the one in which they are established). They operate a common-law-based legal system with their own civil and commercial laws.
Different procedures apply to the enforcement of judgments depending on whether the court in which the judgment was rendered was "onshore" in the UAE (by an emirate or federal court of the UAE), or the DIFC or ADGM courts. Judgments of the onshore courts, the DIFC courts, and the ADGM courts are not considered to be domestic judgments as regards each other. However, for the purposes of this Q&A, we consider enforcement of judgments between the onshore courts and the financial free zone courts as domestic, and judgments issued by a court outside of the UAE as foreign.
Onshore courts. The courts of the emirates of the UAE and the federal courts are bound by the federal laws relating to civil procedure in the UAE. The relevant legal framework is contained in Federal Law No. 11 of 1992 on the Civil Procedure Code (Civil Procedure Code), and section 3 of Cabinet Resolution No. 57 of 2018 Concerning the Executive Regulations of the Civil Procedure Code (Executive Regulations), as amended by Cabinet Resolution No. 33 of 2020. The Executive Regulations contain provisions which amend and repeal the similar provisions of the Civil Procedure Code, by virtue of Article 192 of the Executive Regulations.
In particular, the Executive Regulations deal with matters such as:
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The role of the execution judge and the enforcement officers (Articles 69 to 74, Executive Regulations).
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The form of the writ of execution (Articles 75 to 76, Executive Regulations).
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Immediate enforcement (Articles 77 to 84, Executive Regulations).
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Enforcement procedures (Articles 97 to 102, Executive Regulations).
Enforcement of judgments between the courts of the different emirates is covered under Federal Law No. 10 of 2019 on Regulating Judicial Relations among the Judicial, Federal and Local Authorities (Judicial Relations Law). Article 10 of the Judicial Relations Law provides that all final or enforceable judgments or orders of the federal or emirate courts are enforceable throughout the UAE, in accordance with relevant legislation (that is, the Civil Procedure Code and the Executive Regulations).
The UAE is a party to the following pan-regional conventions and treaties:
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Riyadh Arab Agreement for Judicial Co-operation 1983 (Riyadh Convention).
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GCC Convention for the Execution of Judgments, Delegations and Judicial Notifications 1996 (GCC Convention).
In addition, the UAE has entered into bilateral treaties for the reciprocal recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments, including treaties with China, India, and France.
The international treaties entered into by the UAE apply in the financial free zones. In addition, the financial free zone courts have entered into bilateral memoranda of understanding with several courts in other jurisdictions, notably common law jurisdictions. For example, the DIFC courts have entered into a:
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Memorandum of Guidance as to Enforcement with the High Court of England and Wales.
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Memorandum on Enforcement with the Supreme Court of Singapore.
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Memorandum of Guidance on Understanding the Enforcement of Money Judgments with the Federal Court of Malaysia.
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Memorandum of Guidance as to Enforcement with the High Court of Hong Kong.
The ADGM courts have entered into similar memoranda.
Enforcement of onshore UAE judgment in the same emirate. Unlike common law proceedings, a judgment creditor must take the additional step of applying to the execution court for an execution order of the substantive judgment under UAE civil law procedure.
Under Article 75 of the Executive Regulations, the execution process starts with an order by the execution judge to serve a writ of execution on the judgment debtor. There is a requirement for a certain executory formula to be affixed to the writ. The judgment debtor is also served with a description of the amount claimed and (among other things) a request for payment within 15 days from the date of service (Article 97, Executive Regulations). Following the expiration of the 15-day period, the judgment creditor can request that the court identifies the assets of the debtor to enforce the judgment.
Jurisdiction over enforcement is vested in the execution judge of the court that issued the writ of execution in the UAE (Article 70(2), Executive Regulations), unless the judge delegates enforcement to an execution judge in another emirate.
Articles 77 to 84 of the Executive Regulations allow for immediate enforcement under an express provision of the Civil Procedure Code, or if awarded by the court (such as by way of judgment). However, the judgment debtor can file for a stay of execution if the execution would result in serious damage (Articles 83 and 84, Executive Regulations). In this case, a bond or other sufficient safeguard can be ordered by the court to protect the right of the judgment creditor.
Domestic
Judgments must generally be final and have conclusive effect. However, UAE law will recognise a Court of Appeal judgment as a final judgment, even where the judgment has been appealed to the Court of Cassation.