This course explains the law of the United Arab Emirates, not US law. Rules that look the same elsewhere may be different. This covers the federal law of the UAE, with notes on the emirates and the free zones that have their own rules.
Course · Law by country · United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates Law
The law of the UAE for the people who deal with it: the federation and its mixed legal tradition, government, the courts and the DIFC and ADGM, rights and nationality, civil and family law, business and tax, residence and employment, and criminal law and international disputes.
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The United Arab Emirates is a federation of seven emirates and one of the world’s most international places to live, work and do business. Its legal system is a mix: civil-law codes drawn from Egyptian and Jordanian models, Islamic Sharia as a main source of legislation and the basis of much of family law, local custom, and two financial free zones, the DIFC and the ADGM, that apply English-style common law in English. This course gives a complete first map for the people who deal with it, from the point of view of the foreigner. It starts with the history, the Constitution and the sources of law; then federalism and the institutions of government; then the courts and the legal professions, including the DIFC and ADGM Courts; then rights, nationality and administrative law; then the Civil Transactions Law, property and the two systems of family law and inheritance; then business, free zones and tax; then residence, employment and everyday legal life; and finally criminal law, arbitration and the enforcement of judgments and awards. It uses invented people and businesses, and three working tools.
The Curriculum
Foundations of UAE law: history, the Constitution, sources, Islamic Sharia, and a mixed system of civil law, common law and special financial zones→
History, the Constitution, sources, Sharia and the mixed system. Practice: Which Source, Which Rule Applies and Spot the Mistake.
Federalism, government and public institutions: the seven emirates, the Federal Supreme Council, the President, the Cabinet, the Federal National Council and the emirates’ governments→
Federal powers and emirate powers, the Supreme Council, the President, the Cabinet, the Federal National Council and the emirates’ governments. Practice: Which Level, Which Body and Spot the Mistake.
Courts and the legal professions: federal and local courts, the Federal Supreme Court, the DIFC and ADGM Courts, public prosecution, advocates, legal consultants and notaries→
Federal and local courts, the Federal Supreme Court, the DIFC and ADGM Courts, prosecution and the legal professions. Practice: Which Court, Which Professional and Spot the Mistake.
Rights, nationality and administrative law: constitutional guarantees, citizens and foreign residents, expression, religion and privacy, licensing and remedies against authorities→
Constitutional rights, nationality, the status of foreigners, expression, religion, privacy, administrative powers and remedies. Practice: Which Right, Which Remedy and Spot the Mistake.
Civil law, property and family: the Civil Transactions Law, contracts, civil liability, real estate, personal status for Muslims and non-Muslims, marriage, divorce, custody and inheritance→
The Civil Transactions Law, contracts, harm, property, personal status, marriage, divorce, custody and inheritance. Practice: Which Rule, Which Law Applies and Spot the Mistake.
Business, investment and taxation: company forms, mainland and free zones, foreign ownership, commercial agencies, contracts, corporate tax, VAT, banking, intellectual property and data→
Company forms, mainland and free zones, foreign ownership, agencies, tax, banking, intellectual property and data. Practice: Which Form, Which Step and Spot the Mistake.
Residence, employment and everyday legal life: visas, Emirates ID, work permits, contracts, end-of-service benefits, insurance, tenancy and public conduct→
Visas and residence, work permits and contracts, termination and gratuity, insurance, tenancy and everyday conduct. Practice: Which Visa, Which Step and Spot the Mistake.
Criminal law and international dispute resolution: offences, defences, investigation, arrest and trial, litigation, arbitration, the DIFC and ADGM, and enforcing judgments and awards→
Offences, investigation, arrest, trial, litigation, arbitration, the DIFC and ADGM and enforcement. Practice: Which Stage, Which Route and Spot the Mistake.
Capstone: Capstone: Lucas Bennett and the Dubai events studio→
An events studio in Dubai, a visa, a company form, a distributor clause, a dismissal, a deposit and a will. Choose the route, the form, the forum and the remedy.
What It Covers
“You will be able to say, for any problem you may have in the UAE, which rule applies, which court or authority decides it, which time limit runs and when you need a UAE-licensed lawyer.”
- Written for the foreigner: it follows the questions a visitor, resident, employee, family or business actually has (the visa, the company, the contract clause, the labour dispute, the lease, the will) and says plainly which professional may do what.
- Teaches the structure behind the rules, so that a student who knows how the federal and emirate levels, the onshore courts and the free zones fit together can read any new law, and compare the UAE’s mixed system with others.
- Three tools with invented facts: a Visa and Residence Finder, a Company Setup Chooser and a Court and Forum Finder, each showing how the answer changes when a fact does.
- Honest about limits: it teaches durable provisions, flags where rules change quickly (new codes, free zone rules, visa categories, tax rates, personal-status reforms) and does not state changing figures. It is general education, not advice.
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Or give this as a giftOther Scrolls in This Chamber
Across the Table$15 →Interests, walk-away numbers, offers, trades, pressure tactics and professional limits, with practice rooms and calculators.
Cooling the Room$15 →How conflict escalates, mapping a dispute, de-escalation, hard conversations, choosing a process, mediation, power, culture and ethics, with practice mediations.
The Client Conversation$15 →Trust, the first meeting, fees and scope, updates in plain words, advice and decisions, bad news, boundaries and ethics, with practice meetings.Module 1 is free to try. Sign in, pass each module quiz and the course average, and your Certificate of Completion is emailed to you automatically. This course teaches method and technique with invented people and figures; it is general education, not legal advice, and professional rules differ from country to country.
Common questions
- Is this about Dubai only?
- No. It covers the federal law of the UAE and notes where an emirate (Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Ras Al Khaimah and others) or a free zone (the DIFC and the ADGM) has its own rules.
- Does it cover Islamic law?
- Yes. It explains how Sharia is a main source of legislation, how it works with the codes, and how the personal-status system for Muslims differs from the civil system for non-Muslim foreigners.
- Does it give the current rule on every point?
- It teaches the provisions that have lasted. Several codes have been replaced or updated in recent years, and visa categories, free zone rules and tax rates change, so check the current text for any real matter.
- Are the tools real data?
- No. The tools apply well-known rules in simplified form to invented facts. They show the structure of the answer and cannot decide a case.
- Is it for people who want to practise in the UAE?
- No. It is a first course for the people who deal with UAE law. Only a licensed UAE advocate can appear in the onshore courts, and the course says when you need one.
- How do I get the Certificate of Completion?
- Sign in, pass each module quiz and keep a course average of at least 75. The certificate is then issued and emailed to you automatically.
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