Courts of the United Arab Emirates
A federation in which some emirates use federal courts and others run their own. Two financial free zones, in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, have common-law courts that work in English.
Updated October 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.
Federal courts
Local courts (Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Ras Al Khaimah)
Financial free-zone courts
Worth knowing
- Islamic law and civil-law codes apply in the federal and local courts.
Compare United Arab Emirates with another country →
Read the United Arab Emirates profile in the Legal Families Atlas →
Sources
Other systems
African Court on Human and Peoples' RightsArgentinaAustraliaAustriaBangladeshBelgiumBrazilCanadaChileChinaColombiaCzechiaDenmarkEgyptEngland and WalesEuropean Court of Human RightsEuropean UnionFinlandFranceGermanyGhanaGreeceHong KongIndiaIndonesiaInter-American Court of Human RightsInternational Court of JusticeInternational Criminal CourtIranIrelandIsraelItalyJapanKenyaMalaysiaMexicoNetherlandsNew ZealandNigeriaNorwayPakistanPeruPhilippinesPolandPortugalRomaniaRussiaSaudi ArabiaScotlandSingaporeSouth AfricaSouth KoreaSpainSri LankaSwedenSwitzerlandTaiwanThailandTurkeyUnited StatesVietnam
TheLawToKnow Tools’s court-structure diagrams are simplified on purpose and are not legal advice. Report a mistake.
