Appeal by Cassation (Challenge by Annulment) In UAE Law
Appeal by Cassation (Challenge by Annulment) In UAE Law Procedural legislations have established the principle of appealing judicial judgments, which stems from the possibility of errors occurring in these judgments, in order to rectify them.
Appeal by Cassation (Challenge by Annulment) in UAE law can be considered one of the extraordinary methods that helps in nullifying a judgment and seeking its annulment based on exclusive grounds authorized by procedural laws.
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Cassation is considered one of the most important methods for challenging judgments available in both civil and criminal cases. The procedures and conditions for an Appeal by Cassation are set out in the UAE procedural laws.
Through these laws, both the Civil Procedures Law and the Criminal Procedures Law ensure the mechanism and the instances where the right to Appeal by Cassation in UAE law may be utilized.
Appeal by Cassation in UAE Law in Civil Judgments
A litigant may file an Appeal by Cassation in UAE law for civil judgments issued by the Courts of Appeal by submitting a petition prepared according to legal conditions. This may result in the suspension of the execution of the judgment in specific cases defined by law, namely judgments regarding divorce, annulment of marriage, and real estate ownership.
The petition can be submitted to the court that issued the judgment, the Court of Cassation, the Federal Supreme Court, or the Court of Tamyeez (Distinction), depending on the nature of the case.
It is important to note that the annulment (cassation) of a judgment leads to the cancellation of all judgments that relied on the challenged judgment as their basis, regardless of the court that issued them, in accordance with Article 187 of the UAE Civil Procedures Law.
On the other hand, a court’s ruling of inadmissibility, impermissibility, or partial or total rejection of the Appeal by Cassation in UAE law obligates the applicant to pay appropriate costs, in addition to the confiscation of the full or partial amount of the pre-paid security deposit, as the case may be.
Appeal by Cassation in UAE Law in Criminal Judgments
According to the UAE Criminal Procedures Law, the convicted person, the Public Prosecution, or the person responsible for civil rights may utilize the Appeal by Cassation against final felony or misdemeanor judgments issued by the Court of Appeal.
The grounds for submitting the Appeal by Cassation in UAE law to the court may only be stated according to the instances guaranteed by law, which we will clarify in this article, in addition to adhering to the legal deadline for challenging the judgment.
It is worth mentioning that the court has the authority to annul the judgment sua sponte (on its own initiative) in favour of the accused, if it becomes clear to the court that the challenged judgment is tainted by a defect related to public order, or that it was issued based on an error in the application, contravention, or interpretation of the law.
Conditions for an Appeal by Cassation in UAE Law
The conditions for the Appeal by Cassation in UAE law entail some differences in the provisions and procedures for submitting the Appeal by Cassation petition against the final judgment issued by the Courts of Appeal, between civil and criminal judgments, and thus differences in the conditions for the Appeal by Cassation also exist.
Conditions for an Appeal by Cassation in UAE Law in Civil Judgments
A set of legal conditions must be met to complete the procedures for the Appeal by Cassation in UAE law against a civil judgment. These conditions, according to the Civil Procedures Law, are as follows:
- The subject matter of the case must be of unestimated value or its value exceeds five hundred thousand UAE dirhams, according to Article 175 of the Law.
- The Cassation Appeal petition must be submitted within a period not exceeding thirty days, according to Article 178 of the Law.
- The Appeal petition must be signed by a lawyer accepted to plead before the court concerned with examining the appeal request.
- Full payment of the filing fee for the appeal request, which is two thousand UAE dirhams, in addition to depositing a security amount of three thousand dirhams, which can be recovered upon acceptance of the appeal, as per Article 181 of the Law.
- The petition must include all data pertaining to the litigants, their capacities, addresses, data of the challenged judgment, its date of issuance, in addition to specifying the grounds upon which the appeal is based and the requested reliefs, as per Article 179 of the Law.
Conditions for an Appeal by Cassation in UAE Law in Criminal Judgments
Challenging criminal judgments by way of cassation requires adherence to a set of rules stipulated in the Criminal Procedures Law, which are as follows:
- The Cassation Appeal petition must be submitted within a period not exceeding thirty days, according to Article 245 of the Law.
- The report of the Appeal by Cassation must include the grounds upon which the request is based.
- The Appeal by Cassation request must be signed by the Head of the Public Prosecution at least if the request is submitted by the Public Prosecution. Otherwise, the grounds must be signed by a lawyer accepted before the court.
- A financial amount of one thousand dirhams must be deposited as security by the applicant, unless it is submitted by the Public Prosecution, the person sentenced to the death penalty, or a custodial sentence.
Grounds for Appeal by Cassation in UAE Law
Despite the UAE legislator differentiating between civil and criminal judgments and accurately establishing procedural rules for litigation in each, there is a significant overlap between the available grounds for requesting an Appeal by Cassation in UAE law in civil and criminal judgments.
These grounds can be seen in the provisions of Article 175 of the Civil Procedures Law and Article 244 of the Criminal Procedures Law, as follows:
- The challenged judgment is based on an error in the application, interpretation, or contravention of the law.
- The judgment or the litigation procedures are void in a manner that affected the judgment.
- Violation of rules of jurisdiction.
- The existence of a prior judgment in the dispute between the same litigants and on the same subject that contradicts the issued judgment, which has acquired the force of res judicata (final and binding).
- The challenged judgment does not include the reasons that led to it, or they are insufficient or ambiguous.
- The judgment included something not demanded by the litigants or exceeded what they requested.
We have clarified everything related to the Appeal by Cassation in UAE law for you. If you need legal consultation regarding the Appeal by Cassation in UAE law, you should contact Samaha Law Firm, as Samaha Law Firm specializes in the Appeal by Cassation in UAE law… Samaha Law Firm is always your best choice.









