Part of our series on the new UAE Civil Transactions Law (Federal Decree-Law No. 25 of 2025), in force since 1 June 2026.
A clarified hierarchy
First contribution: the hierarchy of norms is clarified. In case of conflict between a special provision and a general provision, the special provision prevails, unless otherwise provided. This is the maxim specialia generalibus derogant, well known to civil lawyers. In concrete terms, banking, commercial or sector-specific laws prevail over the Civil Code in their field, ending years of uncertainty over the interplay between the 1985 Code and the special legislation.
Gap-filling
Second, more remarkable contribution: the gap-filling method. Where the Code is silent, the judge is invited to draw from Islamic Sharia the solution that best serves the public interest, then, failing that, from custom consistent with public policy, and finally from the principles of natural justice. The novelty is that the former system imposed a fixed hierarchy between Islamic schools of jurisprudence. The new text frees the judge from that constraint and grants a latitude guided by the public interest.
The comparatist will think of article 1 of the Swiss Civil Code, which allows the judge, in the absence of law and custom, to rule according to the rules he would establish as legislator. For litigants, the message is twofold: the primacy of special laws secures regulated sectors, and the new flexibility makes the reasoning of decisions more legible and predictable.
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This article is general information and does not constitute legal advice. Each situation calls for its own analysis.