PART FOUR – COMMERCIAL LEGISLATION in the UAE Legislative Structures affecting business in the UAE: An Overview Ch 16

Commercial Legislation Commercial law or business law, is the body of law that applies to the rights, relations, and conduct of persons and businesses engaged in commerce, merchandising, trade….etc. It regulates corporate contracts, hiring practices, and the manufacture and sales of consumer goods. Many countries have adopted civil codes that contain comprehensive statements of their commercial law.

Commercial Legislation in the UAE Abu Dhabi, which leads the national efforts to expand and diversify the country's vital economic sectors, has long realized the importance and huge benefits of a healthy legislative environment for a prosperous economy. Considerable attention is being devoted to the Emirate's local legal system which already guarantees investors a stable and safe atmosphere to invest their money.

Commercial Legislation in the UAE Topics covered: Legal System in Abu Dhabi Legal System in Abu Dhabi Department of Legal Affairs in the Ministry of Economy Department of Legal Affairs in the Ministry of Economy Existing Business Laws in the UAE Existing Business Laws in the UAE New Business Laws and Amendments New Business Laws and Amendments Development of Business Laws Development of Business Laws

Commercial Legislation in the UAE Legal System in Abu Dhabi Legal System in Abu Dhabi The Government is working on several fronts to improve the efficiency of the relevant agencies to develop an effective single window system, e- government program and independent judicial system that will ensure better procedural efficiencies and remove the remaining bureaucratic and legal barriers. The goal is to facilitate easy administrative procedures for the establishment and operation of business ventures across the Emirate.

Commercial Legislation in the UAE Department of Legal Affairs in the Ministry of Economy Department of Legal Affairs in the Ministry of Economy The Department of Legal Affairs in the Ministry of Economy is responsible for developing federal laws and legislations related to economy, commerce and investment.

Commercial Legislation in the UAE Department of Legal Affairs in the Ministry of Economy responsibilities: Department of Legal Affairs in the Ministry of Economy responsibilities: formulation of draft bills, amendments, ministerial resolutions, ministerial and administrative decisions and circulars related to economic and commercial activities in the country It also participates in the meetings of the Technical Committee for Legislation at the Ministry of Justice Reviews Memoranda of Association and basic statute of private joint-stock companies and gives legal opinion on them Giving observations on agreements, treaties and resolutions regarding the GCC trade laws and the economic and trade agreements to be concluded with the Arab nations

Commercial Legislation in the UAE Existing Business Laws in the UAE 1.Federal Law No. (5) of 1975 regarding the commercial register. 2.Federal Law No. (1) of 1979 regarding the organisation of industry affairs and its amendments. 3.Federal Law No. (4) of 1979 concerning the suppression of fraud and deceit in commercial transactions 4.Federal Law No. (8) of 1980 regarding the regulation of labour relations and its amendments. 5.Federal Law No. (10) of 1980 concerning the Central Bank, the monetary system and the organisation of the banking profession and its amendments. 6.Federal Law No. (18) of 1981 concerning the organisation of commercial agencies 7.Federal Law No. (8) of 1984 on commercial companies and its amendments 8.Federal Law No. (37) of 1992 regarding the protection of trademarks and its amendments 9.Federal Law No. (18) of 1993 regarding commercial transactions

Commercial Legislation in the UAE Existing Business Laws in the UAE 10 Federal Law No. (22) of 1995 regarding organisation of the auditing profession and its amendments. 11. Federal Law No. (4) of 2000 regarding the Emirates Securities and Commodities Authority and Market 12. Federal Law No. (4) of 2002 regarding criminalisation of money laundering. 13. Federal Law No. (7) of 2002 on copyrights and related rights. 14. Federal Law No. (17) of 2002 regarding organisation and protection of industrial property 15. Federal Law No. (8) of 2004 regarding financial free zones. 16. Federal Law No. (13) of 2004 regarding controlling the import, export and transit of rough diamonds. 17. Federal Law No. (24) of 2006 regarding consumer protection. 18. Federal Law No. (1) of 2006 concerning electronic transactions and commerce 19. Federal Law No. (13) of 2007 on commodities that are subject to import and export control.

Commercial Legislation in the UAE New Business Laws and Amendments New Business Laws and Amendments 1- Foreign Investment Law: removes a large part of the regulatory and administrative obstacles to attract more foreign and Arab direct investment. 2- Competition Law: promoting the principle of competition in respond to the World Trade Organization (WTO) recommendations. 3- Law on Certificate of Origin: The new law will address various issues pertaining to the origin of national goods and issuance of certificates of origin. It will also allow the Ministry of Economy to impose penalties and fines on those who issue fake certificates, documents or data.

Commercial Legislation in the UAE New Business Laws and Amendments New Business Laws and Amendments 4- New Federal Law on Commercial Companies: The new federal law on commercial companies makes it mandatory for all companies in the country to develop a general framework for corporate governance to ensure the protection of shareholder rights, achieve transparency, disclose financial data and improve the efficiency and integrity of the company’s director board. 5- The New Law on Commercial Arbitration : The new law will be applied to resolve commercial disputes instead of the UAE Civil Procedure Code (Federal Law No. (11) of As per the new law, civil cases will be heard by the civil courts of respective emirates, while the Abu Dhabi Federal Court of Appeal will hear international cases.

Commercial Legislation in the UAE Development of Business Laws Development of Business Laws Step 1: The Ministry of Economy, when introducing any amendments to an existing law or preparing a new bill, presents a memorandum seeking the permission of the cabinet which, after studying the request, authorises the ministry to form the draft bill. Step 2: the proposed bill is presented to the cabinet for approval and then to the Technical Committee for Legislation in the Ministry of Justice which includes legal experts who study the draft bill from various aspects and make necessary modifications in coordination with the Ministry of Economy.

Commercial Legislation in the UAE Development of Business Laws Development of Business Laws Step 3: The bill is then sent to the Ministerial Committee for Legislation which includes the Minister of Justice as Chairman and the Minister of State for FNC Affairs, the Minister of Social Affairs, the Minister of Finance, the Minister of Environment and Water and the Minister of Economy as members. Step 4: the bill goes to the cabinet for its review and approval and then to the Federal National Council for further discussion and approval. Step 5: The Ministry of Presidential Affairs then scrutinises the final version of the law and publishes it in the Official Gazette.