Federal Supreme Court of the UAE: What It Decides, Which Cases Reach It and How to Find Its Judgments

Direct answer. The Federal Supreme Court is the highest court of the UAE's federal judiciary, and its judgments are final. Its powers come from the UAE Constitution, Articles 94 to 101. They also come from Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2022, which replaced Federal Law No. 10 of 1973 on 2 January 2023. The court sits in Abu Dhabi. It decides disputes between emirates or with the federation, reviews whether laws are constitutional and interprets the Constitution. It also hears cassation challenges against judgments of the federal courts of appeal. It is not the last stop for every case in the country, though. Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Ras Al Khaimah run their own courts, each with its own court of cassation. Sharjah has also had its own Court of Cassation since its first session on 7 July 2025. This guide covers what the court is, what it decides, which cases reach it, how they get there, and how to find its judgments. For the wider map of UAE courts, start with which UAE court handles your case.

The Federal Supreme Court at a glance

Six facts answer most questions about the court. Each row comes from the Constitution or from the federal laws on the judiciary.

Where the court's powers come from

Two texts set up the court: the Constitution, and a decree-law that took effect in 2023.

The Constitution

The Constitution's articles on the federal judiciary start at Article 94. That article says justice is the basis of government, and that judges are independent. Article 95 creates a Federal Supreme Court and federal courts of first instance. Article 99 lists the court's powers. Article 100 says it holds its hearings in the capital city. Article 101 makes its judgments final and binding on everyone.

The Constitution also draws the line between federal and local courts. Under Article 104, each emirate's local judicial authorities handle every matter that the Constitution does not give to the federal courts. Under Article 105, an emirate can ask for a federal law that transfers some or all of that local jurisdiction to the federal courts. Federal Law No. 6 of 1978 is one such law: it set up federal courts in some emirates and moved local judicial powers to them.

Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2022

The court's own statute is Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2022 Concerning the Federal Supreme Court. It came into force on 2 January 2023 (Article 54). Article 53 repealed Federal Law No. 10 of 1973, the court's original law. Older guides that cite the 1973 law therefore describe rules that no longer apply.

A second change matters for anyone reading old material. Federal Law No. 7 of 2021 repealed Federal Law No. 17 of 1978, which used to regulate cassation before the court. Cassation procedure now sits in the federal procedure codes. The 2022 law applies those codes before the court, except where it says otherwise (Article 42). You can read the official text on the UAE legislation portal.

The idea of the court is older than the federation itself. The federal government portal traces its first mention to 1968, when Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan and Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum agreed on a federation between them.

Who sits on the court

The President of the State appoints the judges by federal decree, after the Federal Supreme Council approves (Article 5; Constitution, Article 96). Article 2 sets the court's make-up as a chief justice and four judges, and allows alternate judges as well. The Constitution caps the court at a chief justice and up to five judges (Article 96).

Article 6 sets the conditions for appointment. Among them, a judge must:

• be a UAE citizen with full legal capacity;
• be at least 40 years old;
• hold a degree in Islamic Sharia, law, or both, from an approved university or institute;
• have at least five years in the courts of appeal or equivalent prosecution posts, or at least 15 years in other judicial or legal work;
• have a record of good conduct, with no conviction for a crime involving dishonour.

Article 7 lets nationals of other Arab states who meet the remaining conditions be appointed by secondment or on renewable contracts. The court's judges may not be recused (Article 15). They cannot be dismissed except for the reasons the law lists, such as resignation, retirement, ill health or a disciplinary ruling (Article 16).

What the Federal Supreme Court decides

Article 4 of the 2022 law lists its powers, building on Article 99 of the Constitution.

The court has a department for constitutional matters and other departments for the rest of its work (Article 3). Five judges decide the matters in the first six items of Article 4. Three judges decide the others, and judgments are by majority in both cases.

Disputes inside the federation

• disputes between member emirates, or between one or more emirates and the federal government, when the parties refer them to the court (item 1);
• objections by the Federal Supreme Council to international agreements concluded by an emirate (item 13);
• disputes between the competent federal authorities and an emirate about concluding an international treaty or agreement (item 14).

Constitutional review and interpretation

• whether a federal law is constitutional, when one or more emirates challenge it (item 2);
• whether an emirate's legislation is constitutional, when a federal authority challenges it for breaching the Constitution or federal law (item 3);
• whether laws and regulations in general are constitutional, when a court refers the question during a case (item 4);
• interpretation of the Constitution, at the request of a federal authority or an emirate's government, binding on everyone (item 5);
• interpretation of international treaties and conventions (item 6);
• whether implementing resolutions of international organisations is constitutional, and whether a foreign judgment that would bind the State should be disregarded (item 12).

Cassation, federal crimes and conflicts of jurisdiction

• cassation challenges against judgments of the federal courts of appeal (item 8). Where the court overturns a judgment, the law lets it decide the merits itself;
• crimes that directly affect federal interests, such as crimes against the federation's internal or external security, forgery of federal documents or seals, and counterfeiting currency (item 9);
• the accountability of ministers and senior federal officials appointed by decree, at the request of the Federal Supreme Council (item 7);
• conflicts of jurisdiction between federal courts and an emirate's courts, or between the courts of two emirates (items 10 and 11);
• any other power given by the Constitution or by a federal law (item 15).

Which emirates' cases reach the Federal Supreme Court

For everyday civil, criminal and family cases, the answer depends on which court system your emirate uses.

The federal government portal says that "the emirates of Sharjah, Ajman Fujairah and Umm Al Quwain follow the federal judicial system." It adds that Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Ras Al Khaimah keep their own independent judicial departments. In those three emirates, the top court for ordinary cases is the emirate's own Court of Cassation. Sharjah also has its own Judicial Department, and its Court of Cassation held its first session on 7 July 2025, although some official pages still list Sharjah among the federal-court emirates. So check which court is named on your papers.

When a case from a local-court emirate can still reach it

A local court system does not put an emirate wholly outside the court's reach. A case from any emirate can come before the Federal Supreme Court when:

• a court refers a constitutional question raised during the case (Article 4, item 4, and Article 31);
• a federal court and a local court, or the courts of two emirates, both keep the same case, both refuse it, or issue contradictory judgments (Article 33);
• a court refers a question on interpreting an international treaty (Article 32);
• the dispute is between an emirate and the federation (Article 4, item 1).

The financial free zone courts sit outside this table. For how they work, see our guide to DIFC Courts jurisdiction and structure.

How a case reaches the Federal Supreme Court

Most cases arrive by one of four routes, and each route has its own filing rules.

Route 1: cassation from a federal court of appeal

This is the route most individuals meet. Article 191(2) of the Civil Procedure Code says judgments of the federal courts are challenged by cassation before the Federal Supreme Court. That applies unless the court's own law says otherwise. The code's general cassation rules then apply:

• Which judgments. Court of Appeal judgments and decisions in claims worth more than AED 500,000, or of indeterminate value (Article 175(1)). Any final judgment or decision, from any court, that contradicts an earlier final judgment between the same parties can also be challenged (Article 175(2)). Court of Appeal judgments and decisions in execution proceedings cannot be challenged by cassation (Article 175(3)).
• Which grounds. Points of law only (Article 175). These include a wrong application or interpretation of the law, a nullity, or a breach of jurisdiction rules. They also include a clash with an earlier final judgment between the same parties, missing or unclear reasons, and an award beyond what was asked.
• Deadline. 30 days (Article 178).
• Who signs. A lawyer admitted before the court that hears the challenge (Article 179).
• Cost. A fixed fee of AED 2,000, plus a security deposit of AED 3,000 that is refunded only if the challenge is admitted (Article 181).

Cassation is not a new trial of the facts. It asks whether the court below applied the law correctly. For the earlier stages, see how a civil lawsuit works in the UAE, and the dictionary entries for the Court of Appeal and cassation.

Criminal cases follow the Criminal Procedures Law. It sets a 30-day limit from the judgment for a cassation appeal, with the period starting from service for some judgments (Article 245). The Public Prosecution, the convicted person and other named parties may file. A prosecutor of at least chief-prosecutor rank signs the Public Prosecution's grounds. Anyone else's grounds must be signed by an attorney the court accepts (Article 35 of the 2022 law; Article 245 of the Criminal Procedures Law).

The figures above come from LEXAI's copy of the law text, taken from the official portal's consolidated version of the Civil Procedure Code. Procedure codes change, so check the official text, or ask a lawyer, before you rely on a deadline or a fee.

Route 2: a constitutional question in a pending case

A trial court can refer a constitutional question on its own, by a reasoned decision (Article 31). If a party raises the plea and the court accepts it, the court sets a deadline for that party to file the challenge with the Federal Supreme Court. If the deadline passes without proof of filing, the party is treated as having dropped the plea. The trial court pauses the case until the Federal Supreme Court rules. If the trial court rejects the plea, it must give reasons. The parties can then challenge that rejection together with the judgment on the merits, where that judgment can be appealed.

Route 3: a petition filed directly

Matters such as disputes between emirates, challenges by an emirate or a federal authority, and requests for interpretation start with a petition (Article 34). It must set out the parties, the subject of the case, the provisions in dispute and the supporting documents. Where an individual files a petition, a lawyer admitted to plead before the Federal Supreme Court must sign it.

Route 4: a conflict of jurisdiction

Sometimes two courts in different systems both keep a case, both refuse it, or give contradictory judgments. A party, or the Public Prosecutor, can then ask the court to name the competent court (Article 33). Filing the petition pauses the disputed cases. The court can also stop enforcement of the contradictory judgments until it decides which one stands.

What happens inside the court

The case management office presents the file to the chief justice, who assigns the competent department (Article 36). Appeals in commercial, civil, administrative, personal status, labour and criminal matters are excluded from that step. A judge from the department is then appointed to prepare the case. The College of Commissioners may also prepare a report on the legal opinion when asked (Article 11). The preparing judge then writes a report on the facts and legal issues, without giving a view (Article 37). The court decides after hearing the Public Prosecution, without oral pleadings unless it wants something clarified. A criminal case is decided only after the accused's defence is heard (Article 38).

What a Federal Supreme Court judgment means

A judgment of the court is the end of the road: no further appeal exists, and the Constitution makes it binding on everyone.

• No appeal. Judgments of the court cannot be challenged by any method of appeal (Article 40).
• Constitutional rulings bind everyone. Rulings in constitutional cases and interpretation decisions bind all state authorities and everyone (Article 41).
• An unconstitutional provision stops applying. It cannot be applied from the day after the judgment is published, unless the judgment sets another date. A ruling against a tax provision has only direct effect, although the claimant still benefits (Article 41).
• Convictions can fall. If the provision struck down is a penal one, convictions based on it are treated as if they had never been issued (Article 41).
• Settled principles. Outside constitutional matters, a department that wants to depart from a settled principle can ask for a larger formation of the court to decide. The same applies where earlier principles conflict (Article 39).
• Enforcement does not stop by itself. Filing before the court does not stay the challenged judgment unless the court orders a stay (Article 40). The Civil Procedure Code has its own automatic stay: a cassation challenge stays a judgment on divorce, dissolution of marriage or the ownership of real property (Article 177). Check with a lawyer whether that rule applies before the Federal Supreme Court, which has its own stay rule. In a civil cassation, a stay request carries a fixed fee of AED 1,000 (Civil Procedure Code, Article 181).

How to follow a case or find a judgment

Use official channels only: the hearing schedule and the court's judgments are published through the Ministry of Justice.

• Hearing status. The federal government portal says Ministry of Justice e-services include a "search of status of a case, which enables people to view the hearing schedule online". Have your case number ready.
• Judgments. The same portal says the Ministry's legislation e-portal gives access to "the UAE High Court case decisions (both civil and criminal)".
• The court's own publishing. The court's Technical Office classifies and indexes its legal rulings, and supervises publication of its judgments (Article 14).
• Constitutional rulings. Judgments on constitutionality, and on interpreting the Constitution or treaties, are published free of charge in the Official Gazette (Article 44).
• Cases in local-court emirates. Search through that emirate's own courts. See our guides to Dubai court case inquiry and to Sharjah court timings and case inquiry.

We could not confirm the court's street address, visiting hours or the current names of its e-services from an official source at the time of writing. Check them on the Ministry of Justice website before you travel or file. Be wary of third-party sites that offer to search judgments for a fee; the official portals are the safe source.

Common misunderstandings about the Federal Supreme Court

A few beliefs come up again and again, and each one can cost time or money.

• "Every case can go to the Federal Supreme Court." No. Many cases end at the Court of Appeal. Ordinary cases in Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Ras Al Khaimah, and in Sharjah since July 2025, go to those emirates' own courts of cassation.
• "It will hear my evidence again." No. Civil cassation is limited to the points of law listed in Article 175 of the Civil Procedure Code.
• "Filing stops enforcement." Not usually. A stay generally needs an order from the court (Article 40). Under the Civil Procedure Code, a cassation challenge stays divorce and real-property ownership judgments automatically (Article 177). Ask a lawyer whether that rule applies before this court.
• "I can ask the court to strike down a law." Not directly. An individual raises the plea in a pending case, and the trial court decides whether it goes forward (Article 31).
• "The 1973 law still applies." It was repealed when the 2022 law came into force on 2 January 2023.

When to get legal help

The deadlines are short and the filing rules are technical. A cassation challenge must be signed by a lawyer admitted before the court. A constitutional plea has to be raised properly in the trial court first. If you are weighing either step, speak to a lawyer well before the 30-day period runs out. For how criminal cases reach court in the first place, see our guide to the Public Prosecution. If you need advice on your own facts, you can find a lawyer on LEXAI.

This is general legal information, not legal advice. Your own facts, and later changes to the law, may change the answer. Confirm current rules with the Ministry of Justice or a licensed UAE lawyer.