Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia

Launched first administrative courts for investor-State disputes

22 Jan 2024

On 22 January 2024, the Government of Saudi Arabia launched its first administrative enforcement court. The court will take up disputes between local and foreign investors who find themselves at odds with Government institutions. It will have jurisdiction over Government institutions and will have the power to hand down fines and prison terms to individuals who fail to abide by its rulings. The launch of the court comes weeks after the Civil Transactions Law (CTL) went into effect in December. The law is the first local written legal code meant to replace a system in which judges had full discretion in ruling on business disputes on a case-by-case basis according to their own interpretation of shariah.