Filing lawsuits requires the plaintiff or his/her representative to submit a 'statement of claim' and supporting documents to the Case Management Office in the court or by creating electronic records for such lawsuits. Each defendant is entitled to receive a copy of the plaintiff’s claim. 

The statement of claim mainly include:

• the plaintiff's and the defendant's personal details and addresses
• the subject-matter of the lawsuit
• the requests and grounds
• the date of submission of the lawsuit to the Case Management Office
• the court before which the lawsuit is filed
• the signature of the plaintiff or his representative.

If the case is related to nullification, revocation or validation of a contract, a copy of the contract is required.

For the implementation of judgements issued abroad, the UAE's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation should attest the original judgement.

Documents presented to the UAE's courts must be in Arabic; otherwise, it should be translated into Arabic by a legal translator approved by the UAE's Ministry of Justice.

The plaintiff should sign the lawsuit if it is to be submitted by the attorney. After submitting the documents, the plaintiff or the attorney will be asked to pay the court fee based on the type of the case.

After that, the court will give the case a number and a date for the hearing. The clerk, through the court official (the bailiff), will serve a notification on the defendant within 10 days from the date the statement was filed.

The litigant should make sure that the court has the jurisdiction to hear the case according to the provisions of the UAE Civil Procedures law, section 3.

Related links

• eFile a case-Ministry of Justice
• Case registration- Dubai Courts