Without Prejudice Meaning in the UAE: Settlement Offers and Legal Texts

Direct answer. "Without prejudice" has two meanings in the UAE, and people mix them up. On a letter, email or settlement offer, it is a label that says: this is an attempt to settle, so do not use it against me in court. In a UAE law, "without prejudice to Article X" means "subject to Article X" or "this does not affect Article X". The settlement label has written force in two courts, the DIFC Courts and the ADGM Courts, whose rules keep a formal settlement offer from the trial judge until the case is decided. In the onshore courts, federal and local, neither the Evidence Law nor the Civil Procedure Code gives the label any effect, and the Evidence Law treats written admissions, correspondence and emails as evidence. The confidentiality that onshore law does guarantee attaches to mediation and conciliation procedures, not to a phrase typed at the top of an email.

Two meanings, one phrase

You meet the phrase in one of two places: on a letter or email from the other side of a dispute, or at the start of an article in a UAE law.

The first sense is about what a court may see. The second is about how two rules fit together. In foreign court orders you may also see "dismissed without prejudice", which means the claim can be brought again; this guide covers the two senses used in UAE practice.

What the label does on a settlement offer

Settlement talks need concessions. A party may offer to pay part of a claim just to end the dispute, and fears the other side will later show that offer to the judge as proof it owed something. The "without prejudice" label marks the message as a negotiating step, not a statement of position. The variant "without prejudice save as to costs" (or "except as to costs") asks the court to ignore the offer while deciding who wins, then lets it be shown when the court decides who pays the costs.

Whether a UAE court honours it depends on the court.

DIFC and ADGM Courts: where the label is written into the rules

The DIFC Courts in Dubai and the ADGM Courts in Abu Dhabi have their own procedure rules, and both write the label into them for a formal settlement offer.

In the DIFC, Rule 32.46 states: "A Part 32 offer will be treated as 'without prejudice except as to costs'." Rule 32.47 bars telling the trial judge an offer was made "until the case has been decided". Rule 32.48 lists the exceptions: a defence of tender before claim, a stay after acceptance, and a written agreement that the rule should not apply. See the DIFC Courts Part 32 page.

In the ADGM, Rule 151(1) of the Court Procedure Rules 2016 states: "A Part 18 offer will be treated as 'without prejudice save as to costs'." Rule 151(2) keeps the offer and its terms from the trial judge until the case is decided, and Rule 213(1) does the same for an appeal judge until all questions other than costs are decided. The rules are on the ADGM Courts legislation and procedures page.

The formal offer matters for costs. Under DIFC Rule 32.50, if a claimant fails to beat a defendant's offer, the court will, unless it considers it unjust, award the defendant its costs from the date the relevant period expired, plus interest. In the ADGM, Rule 152(2) allows the offer to be made at any time, including before proceedings start.

One limit: an informal offer is allowed but carries no Part 32 or Part 18 consequences, and these rules do not spell out how either court treats ordinary "without prejudice" letters. If you litigate there, confirm it with a lawyer admitted before that court. For how these courts fit in, see our guide to DIFC Courts jurisdiction and structure.

Onshore UAE courts: what the federal law actually says

In the onshore courts, federal and local, the starting point is the Law of Evidence in Civil and Commercial Transactions, Federal Decree-Law No. 35 of 2022. Four of its rules matter here:

• Admissions. Article 14(1) defines an admission as "a party's statement acknowledging an obligation owed by him to another party". Under Article 14(3), it is extrajudicial if it is not made before the court.
• Form. Article 16(1) says an admission "may be made expressly or implicitly, orally or in writing."
• Correspondence. Article 29 gives signed correspondence, or correspondence proved to come from the sender, "the same probative value as informal instruments".
• Email. Article 54(5) lists "Electronic correspondence, including emails" as electronic evidence, and Article 55 subjects it to the same provisions as documentary evidence. Official text: UAE legislation portal.

Neither the Evidence Law nor the Civil Procedure Code, Federal Decree-Law No. 42 of 2022, contains a provision that excludes settlement correspondence or refers to a "without prejudice" label. That is not a prediction of how a judge will rule. It means no federal statute gives the label legal effect, and whether a judge admits or disregards such a message is at the court's discretion. Confirm your own position with a licensed UAE lawyer. For the wider rules on documents and witnesses, read our guide to UAE civil court evidence rules.

Where onshore confidentiality does exist: mediation and conciliation

The federal rule is Federal Decree-Law No. 40 of 2023 on Mediation and Conciliation in Civil and Commercial Disputes. Article 5(1) states: "The procedures of both the Mediation and the Conciliation shall be confidential." It adds that the mediation or conciliation, the documents and information presented in it, and any agreements or compromises the parties made "may not be invoked before any court or any entity whatsoever". Disclosure is barred without the consent of all parties, or where the law requires a crime to be reported. Under Article 5(2), the rule does not apply to the settlement agreement itself or the documents needed to enforce it. Official text: UAE legislation portal.

Note the scope. Article 5 protects the procedures the Decree-Law sets out: court-ordered mediation, and consensual mediation started by an application to the supervising judge under a mediation agreement (Article 12), including one run by a private mediator (Articles 15 and 41). The Decree-Law does not say expressly whether a mediation run entirely outside these procedures is covered; confirm that with a licensed UAE lawyer. It does not cover a direct email between two parties with no mediator.

Dubai has its own regime. Dubai Law No. 18 of 2021 Regulating Conciliation governs conciliation in Dubai through the Centre for Amicable Settlement of Disputes, private conciliators working for entities the Centre authorises, and government-entity employees assigned to conciliate (Articles 2 and 3). Article 25 states: "Conciliation sessions are confidential." Information and documents exchanged in the sessions may not be disclosed to third parties, with five exceptions:

1. The disputants agree.
2. Legislation in force in the Emirate requires it.
3. It is needed to implement the conciliation agreement.
4. The request comes from a competent judicial authority.
5. The information relates to a crime or public order.

Article 22(a)(5) also requires the conciliator to keep the information confidential during and after the conciliation. Check fees and eligibility on the Dubai Courts settlement of civil disputes page.

Courts can steer parties here too: under the Civil Procedure Code, the supervising judge may refer them to mediation or conciliation (Article 45(4)), and the court may offer amicable settlement (Article 77). For the terms, see the dictionary entries on conciliation and amicable settlement, and our answer on the difference between mediation and arbitration.

"Without prejudice to Article X": the phrase in UAE laws

The second meaning has nothing to do with settlement. UAE laws use "without prejudice to …" to say one rule works alongside another. Read it as "subject to" or "this does not affect". The Arabic original is usually the drafting formula transliterated as "ma'a 'adam al-ikhlal".

Three real examples:

• Evidence Law, Article 3: "Without prejudice to the provisions of this Law, in case of conflicting evidence …". The article's rule on conflicting evidence applies, but it does not override the rest of the Evidence Law.
• [Federal Decree-Law](/dictionary/federal-decree-law) No. 40 of 2023, Article 8(1): the federal rule applies "without prejudice to the provisions of local laws governing the Mediation provisions". Emirate-level mediation laws still stand.
• Dubai Law No. 18 of 2021, Article 35(a): "Without prejudice to any stricter penalty stipulated in any other legislation, an Authorised Entity will be punished by a fine". The fine applies, and a stricter penalty in another law can still apply too.

Article 5(3) of Federal Decree-Law No. 40 of 2023 pairs the two languages: its English reads "without prejudice to the provisions of civil and criminal liability", and the Arabic uses the "ma'a 'adam al-ikhlal" formula. When you meet the phrase, ask one question: which other rule is being preserved?

Using the label in practice

If you are negotiating a dispute, work through these steps:

1. Identify the forum first. DIFC, ADGM, onshore courts and labour complaints follow different rules.
2. In the DIFC or ADGM, use the formal offer if costs matter. Put it in writing, state that it is made under Part 32 or Part 18 (in the ADGM, on the prescribed form), and specify a period of at least 21 days (in the ADGM, the period to accept), unless the trial is less than 21 days away. Each rule lists further required contents (DIFC 32.4; ADGM 154), so check them before sending.
3. Onshore, treat the label as a signal, not a shield. Write every settlement message on the basis that a judge may read it. Offer a figure without conceding facts you dispute.
4. Use mediation or conciliation when confidentiality matters. Onshore, that is where the law gives written protection.
5. Keep an open record of the facts. Send notices, demands and statements of your position as ordinary letters, separate from settlement proposals.
6. Record the deal. Once terms are agreed, put them in a signed agreement, or ask the court to record them.

Employees have a specific first step. Under Article 54(1) of the Labour Relations Law, Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021, a disputing employer or worker applies to the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation, which takes the steps it considers necessary for an amicable settlement. The Labour Law gives the label no protective effect at that stage. Our guides on filing a labour complaint with MOHRE and the MOHRE amicable settlement stage walk through the process.

When the talks succeed: is the settlement binding?

Yes, once it is agreed. The label protects the negotiation, not the outcome.

Under Article 671 of the Civil Transactions Law, Federal Decree-Law No. 25 of 2025, a settlement is "a contract by which the two parties resolve an existing dispute or prevent a potential dispute, by each of them mutually waiving part of their claim." Article 674 sets a limit: no settlement in matters of personal status or public order, although financial rights arising from personal status, or arising from a crime, can be settled.

Under Article 81 of the Civil Procedure Code, litigants may ask the court, at any stage, to record their agreement in the hearing transcript, provided the agreement does not breach the law, public order or morals; the transcript then has the legal force of a writ of execution. So does a conciliation reached before the supervising judge (Article 45(4)). And under Article 5(2) of the Mediation Decree-Law, a settlement agreement can be invoked although the mediation stays confidential.

Common mistakes

• Treating the label as a shield onshore. No federal statute gives it effect.
• Admitting facts in a settlement email. A written statement that you owe the money may be read as an admission under the Evidence Law.
• Marking notices you will need later. Send a termination notice or formal demand openly.
• Making an informal offer in the DIFC or ADGM and expecting costs consequences. Only an offer made under Rule 32.4 or Rule 154 carries them.
• Giving less than 21 days on a formal DIFC or ADGM offer made at least 21 days before trial (DIFC 32.4(3) and 32.5; ADGM 154(2) and 154(3)).
• Reading "without prejudice to" in a statute as settlement language. It only preserves another rule.

Next step

The forum decides how much the label is worth. For a commercial claim, start with our guide to resolving commercial disputes in the UAE and our answer on conciliation and amicable settlement. For your own case, browse lawyers in dispute resolution and arbitration, civil litigation or labour and employment.

This is general legal information, not legal advice. Confirm current procedure with the relevant authority or a licensed UAE lawyer.