Ras Al Khaimah Courts: How the RAK Judiciary Works, Where to Go and How to Check Your Case

Direct answer. Ras Al Khaimah has its own court system, run by the RAK Courts Department, and it is separate from the federal courts. The UAE Government's official portal lists RAK Courts, with Abu Dhabi and Dubai, among the emirates that keep their own judicial departments, with jurisdiction over matters not assigned to the federal judiciary. RAK has three court levels inside the emirate: the Court of First Instance, the Court of Appeal and the RAK Court of Cassation, set up in 2006. In civil cases, the claim's value decides how far you can appeal. Civil procedure still follows the federal Civil Procedure Code, which applies before every court in the State. To check a case, you subscribe to the department's e-services with UAE PASS. This guide covers who runs the courts, the court levels and fast tracks, hours and contacts, the online inquiry, and which disputes go elsewhere.

Who runs the courts in Ras Al Khaimah

RAK has a local judiciary, so its courts, website and phone numbers differ from the federal ones.

The official UAE Government portal, u.ae, explains that each emirate chose either to join the federal judiciary or keep its own. It then states that Abu Dhabi Judicial Department, Dubai Courts and "RAK Courts in Ras Al Khaimah maintain their own independent judicial departments". Their jurisdiction covers "matters that were not assigned to the Federal Judiciary in accordance with the Constitution" (u.ae, The Federal Judiciary). Sharjah has since set up its own judiciary; see our Sharjah courts guide.

The body that runs the courts is the RAK Courts Department. Its official website is courts.rak.ae. Older guides point to a "rakcourts.gov.ae" address, but that domain did not resolve when we checked in October 2026.

Two other bodies sit beside the courts:

• The RAK Public Prosecution. It was part of the Courts Department until Amiri Decree No. 2 of 2012 made it a separate department, according to its own website.
• The federal Ministry of Justice courts. These serve the federal-judiciary emirates and the federal matters described below. A RAK case number means nothing on a federal portal, and the reverse is also true.

If you are not sure which system your dispute belongs to, read our overview of which UAE court handles your case first.

The three court levels in RAK

RAK has all three levels inside the emirate, but in civil cases how far you can go depends on the claim's value.

The department's history page says the system "was expanded to three levels – Court of First Instance, Court of Appeal and Court of Cassation". It adds that the Court of Cassation, "the highest judicial body in Ras Al Khaimah", was established in 2006. RAK's first civil court opened in 1971, alongside the existing Sharia court.

Court of First Instance

This is where a claim starts. The department describes it as split into partial and plenary circuits. In civil cases the split follows the value of the claim; in criminal cases it follows the gravity of the offence. The RAK service cards draw the civil line at AED 100,000:

• a partial case (the RAK service card calls it a summary case) is a claim that "does not exceed AED 100,000.00";
• a plenary case is a claim above AED 100,000, or a claim of non-estimated value.

These categories come from the RAK service cards. Under Article 29(1)(a) of the federal Civil Procedure Code, single-judge tribunals hear first-instance cases regardless of their value. Confirm at registration which circuit and fee apply to your claim.

Court of Appeal

The Court of Appeal is the second level. A party who does not accept a first-instance judgment in a civil, criminal or personal status case can appeal, except where the law excludes it. The appeal may ask the court to amend or cancel the judgment.

Court of Cassation

Cassation is described as "an extraordinary phase". It reviews final criminal, civil, commercial, labour and personal status judgments that have exhausted the ordinary appeal routes. The court checks whether the judgment applied the law correctly and followed proper procedure. It does not rehear the facts from the start.

In civil cases, Article 175(1) of the federal Civil Procedure Code allows cassation where the claim exceeds AED 500,000 or has no fixed value. Article 159(2) makes appeal judgments in claims of AED 500,000 or less final, with narrow exceptions. Under Article 29(1)(b), first-instance judgments in claims up to AED 50,000 are final, subject to the limited grounds of appeal in Article 160. These value limits are for civil claims; for a criminal or family case, ask RAK Courts or a lawyer whether cassation is open.

Specialist courts and fast tracks in RAK

Beyond the three levels, RAK runs dedicated courts and quick tracks for certain disputes and claim sizes.

The department's introduction page lists the following. Treat the value limits as the department describes them, and confirm at registration which track your claim joins.

These tracks matter in practice. A small debt or a clear contract claim may be decided far faster than the standard first-instance route suggests.

Where the RAK courts are and when they open

The department's contact sheet gives phone numbers and hours, but it dates from 2023, so confirm first.

The Contact Us page on courts.rak.ae links to a one-page sheet titled "For communicating with RAK Courts & Service Centers Thereof". Its file was created in May 2023. These are the figures it lists:

The department's enquiry page also invites questions by email to info@courts.rak.ae.

A few practical points follow from this:

• Hours change. Ramadan, public holidays and service changes can all move them, so call or email before you travel.
• The Family Court is elsewhere. It sits in premises separate from the main Courts Department building.
• Notary services are spread out. The same sheet lists notary public service centres at RAK Municipality, RAKEZ and several Tas-heel and Tawjeeh centres.
• Your hearing time is not the office hours. The court sets the session, and the time appears in your notice or case file.

The sheet locates the headquarters with a QR code rather than a street address. Use the map link on courts.rak.ae, or ask by phone.

How to check your case at the RAK courts

Online case inquiry in RAK needs a one-time e-services subscription linked to UAE PASS.

The department's e-services user manuals page sets out the steps. In short:

1. Register for UAE PASS, the national digital ID.
2. Download the RAK Courts e-services agreement, fill it in and sign it.
3. Email it to e-servicehelp@courts.rak.ae and wait for approval.
4. Log in to the RAK Government portal's e-services and open your package. The packages are for parties, lawyers, banks, institutions and companies.
5. Open the case inquiry service and search for your case.

The e-services entry point is the same RAK digital portal the Public Prosecution links to.

What the inquiry shows

The department's case-inquiry guide (version 1.3) covers three views:

• the details of your cases;
• the list of your postponed (adjourned) cases;
• the schedule of hearings set for a given day.

Its table of searchable case types is wide. It includes civil plenary and partial cases, commercial cassation, labour, personal status, small claims, rental disputes, real estate disputes and several kinds of execution file. An appeal or execution file can carry its own number, so search each stage separately.

Other things you can do online

The same manuals describe more services:

• E-petitions and e-registration. Subscribers can file a judicial petition or register a new case remotely.
• Paying deposits and fees. A remote deposit service and a "Quickpay" service sit on the RAK Government portal.
• The mRAK app. The court's mobile services run through the RAK Government smart app.
• Family files. A marriage or family guidance file can be opened online, even without the parties' package.

The department also links to a public portal of published judgments, useful for seeing how RAK courts have ruled before.

RAK courts or federal courts: which hears your case

Most disputes arising in RAK stay in RAK courts, but a short list of matters goes federal.

RAK courts hear everything not assigned to the federal judiciary. In practice that means most civil, commercial, labour, family and criminal matters arising in the emirate. Two limits apply, both set out on u.ae:

• A local court cannot take jurisdiction away from a federal court. Under Article 105 of the Constitution, a federal law can move local jurisdiction to the federal courts, not the other way round.
• Some matters belong to the Federal Supreme Court alone. These include disputes between emirates, or between an emirate and the federal government. They also include the constitutionality of laws, "crimes directly affecting the interests of the federation", and conflicts of jurisdiction between federal and local courts or between two emirates.

Federal first-instance courts also hear civil, commercial and administrative disputes "between the Federation and the individuals". If your opponent is a federal ministry or authority, check the forum before you file.

As for appeals, u.ae says federal laws "define the circumstances" in which local judgments may go before federal courts. Inside RAK, the last stop depends on the claim's value. For a civil claim of AED 500,000 or less, it is normally the RAK Court of Appeal, or the Court of First Instance for claims up to AED 50,000. Above AED 500,000, or where the claim has no fixed value, it is the RAK Court of Cassation.

Filing a case in RAK: what to expect

The federal Civil Procedure Code governs RAK civil cases, while RAK sets its own fees and court tracks.

Article 1 of the decree issuing Federal Decree-Law No. 42 of 2022 says the Code "shall apply to civil procedures before the courts in the State". Article 4 lets the heads of the local judicial authorities issue decisions to implement it. So the core rules on service, hearings and deadlines are the same in RAK as in Dubai or Abu Dhabi. The RAK courts publish their own service cards on top of that. These are the points worth knowing:

• Registration. Each service card lists its documents. A civil claim needs a statement of claim signed by the plaintiff, a summary statement and a fee receipt.
• First session. The plenary, summary and labour cards each say "The first trial session will be in 10 days at a minimum."
• Fees. RAK charges court fees under its own court-fees law, and each service card lists the fee basis. Read the current card, and any cap, before you file.
• Following your case. Under Article 57(1) of the Code, "A duly-served litigant shall follow up on the adjournments, hearing dates and proceedings". Nobody has to remind you of the next date once you are served.
• Remote hearings. Article 331 lets the court take procedures remotely "at every stage of the civil lawsuit". Ask the circuit whether your session can be remote.

Mediation before a judge decides

RAK also has a court mediation track. Amiri Decree No. 18 of 2019, published on courts.rak.ae, set up a mediation and amicable settlement section for civil and commercial disputes. It covers claims of any value, with three exceptions: orders on petition and urgent or interim actions (including claims with an urgent part), Financial Court cases, and matters for special judicial committees. Under the decree:

• parties attend in person, through an agent, or by electronic means;
• what is said in mediation stays confidential;
• the section aims to settle within one month at most; a section judge can extend this by the same period or longer if the parties agree;
• legal time limits for bringing the claim stop running while the dispute sits with the section.

If you miss a step or a hearing, the consequences can be serious. Our guide to a judgment in absentia in the UAE explains what happens when a defendant does not appear.

Appealing a RAK judgment

Appeals in RAK follow federal time limits and the RAK appeal service card.

Article 161 of the Civil Procedure Code sets the appeal period at 30 days, unless the law provides otherwise. For summary (urgent) proceedings it is 10 days. A partial claim of up to AED 100,000, which the RAK card calls a summary case, is not a summary proceeding in this sense. Count from the date the Code fixes for your judgment, and act early rather than on the last day.

The RAK appeal service card lists what to bring to the Appeal Division:

• the appeal application, signed by the appellant or their legal representative;
• a true copy of the appeal statement, plus a copy for each respondent;
• a copy of the power of attorney, if a lawyer or agent files;
• a copy of the first-instance judgment.

If someone files on your behalf, they need your authority. Our guide to a power of attorney in the UAE explains how to issue one. Once a judgment is final, enforcement moves to the execution judge; see our guide to the execution court.

Labour, family and rental disputes in RAK

These three dispute types have their own entry points, so check yours before you go to court.

Labour claims

Employment disputes go to the RAK Labour Court. The department's page still names the repealed 1980 labour law. The governing law today is Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021. The labour service card asks for the "Original copy of Labour complain", so the court expects the ministry complaint stage first. Our guide on how to file a labour complaint with MOHRE covers that step. The same card lists "Worker: No fees". Article 55(1) of Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021 exempts worker claims up to AED 100,000, and the Cabinet can change that figure. For a larger claim, confirm the fee with RAK Courts before you file.

Family cases

Divorce, maintenance, custody and other personal status cases go to the RAK Family Court. It applies federal family law, including Federal Decree-Law No. 41 of 2024 on personal status. The court also offers family guidance and drafts settlement agreements for a judge to authenticate. For the wider picture, see our guide to UAE family court jurisdiction.

Rental disputes

The RAK case-inquiry guide lists "rental disputes" and "real estate disputes" among the case types you can search. We could not reach an official page that names the body hearing every RAK tenancy dispute. Before filing, ask RAK Courts (info@courts.rak.ae) where your type of tenancy claim starts. Our rental dispute guide compares the rental venues across the emirates.

Criminal cases and the RAK Public Prosecution

Criminal cases in RAK start with the police and the RAK Public Prosecution, not with the court.

The RAK Public Prosecution describes itself as the judicial authority competent, to the exclusion of others, to bring and pursue criminal cases. Its remit covers all crimes committed in the emirate. It became a department separate from the courts under Amiri Decree No. 2 of 2012. The procedure follows the federal Criminal Procedure Law.

Its own pages list:

• specialised prosecutions, including appeal, cassation, family and juveniles, nationality and residency, narcotics, funds and traffic;
• area prosecutions in Al Rams, Al Mamourah, Al Madina and Al Jazeera Al Hamra;
• contact details: Al Qasimi Street, Corniche, Ras Al Khaimah; telephone 07 207 0000; email info@rakpp.rak.ae.

Once the prosecution refers a case, it becomes a court file with its own number. For how prosecutors decide what happens to a complaint, see our explainer on the UAE Public Prosecution.

A short checklist before you go

Five checks save most wasted trips to the RAK courts.

• Confirm the court and circuit on your notice, and whether the Family Court building is the right one.
• Call 07 207 0111 or email info@courts.rak.ae to confirm the hours that day.
• Set up UAE PASS and the e-services subscription before you need the inquiry.
• Keep your case number, Emirates ID and any power of attorney with you.
• Diarise the appeal deadline the day the judgment is issued.

When to get legal help

Many people manage a small claim or a case inquiry alone. Get advice before you file a large or complex claim, or if the other side is a company, a government body or based in another emirate. Do the same if you face a criminal complaint, if a hearing has already been missed, or if a judgment needs appealing within days. RAK Courts publishes its own list of lawyers accredited to appear before its courts on courts.rak.ae.

If you need advice on your own facts, you can find a civil litigation lawyer on LEXAI and contact them directly.

This guide is general information about the RAK court system, not legal advice. Court names, hours, fees and procedures change, and your own facts can change the answer. Check the current position with the RAK Courts Department or a lawyer before you act.