Law

Introduction

Islam has been considered as perhaps one of the oldest religions in the world, and notably it has acquired a significant number of followers (Najeebabadi, 2001). In the Middle East, some countries such as the United Arab Emirates (UAE) adhere to Islamic customs. Simultaneously, the UAE implements the laws on which the Qur'an commands “Allah has made business lawful for you” (Qur'an 2:275). Since Islamic laws are implemented this means that the UAE implements its own set of laws which is considerably distinct to the other jurisprudence in other Arabic states (Williams, 1992). Normally, multinational companies are more equipped in dealing with problems when governed by western legal philosophies and jurisprudence. However, when certain issues fall under the jurisdiction of an Islamic country they have to address it by using the Shariah laws maintained in the Qur'an. According to Carnegie Endowment, in the UAE the law is not only based on Islamic legal principles, but it is also influenced by English common law as well as Egyptian legal traditions. It is mainly influenced by the English since the UAE and the UK had a treaty relationship which lasted for about 20 years (Al Abed and Hellyer, 2001). This paper will describe the elements of the Shariah laws implemented in the Middle Eastern countries mainly focusing on the UAE. At the same time, it will review certain parts of the Qur'an and identify a number of provisions pertaining to the conduct of business in these countries. In doing so, this paper will provide a review of the important business factors that will assist international businesses in its understanding of the legal practices in this region.

Laws in the UAE

To this day, there are still some traditionally Islamic countries such as Iran and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia which continue to use the jurisprudence of the Shariah law (Williams, 1998; Idris, 2007). Conversely, there are other Islamic countries such as Egypt, Libya and the UAE that have taken steps to accommodate the demands for reform by instituting a dual system in their court proceedings with secular courts and religious courts (Robinson, 2003). The UAE's law system is based on the Egyptian law system, which in turn is French based. The UAE has evolved its existing laws over time and incorporated the principles of Shariah law.

In the UAE the federal court has three levels:

The Federal Supreme Court.

The Courts of First Instance.

The Appellate Courts.

Completing the Supreme Court and Courts of First Instance are the emirate-based Shariah courts (Williams, 1998). In the UAE the Federal Supreme Court judge is appointed by the ruler of the UAE and this is followed by the supreme council of rulers approval. The Federal Supreme Court can consist of up to five judges and one chairman (Williams, 1998). The Federal Supreme Court only occasionally deals with commercial cases, this court deals with very serious crimes against the UAE federation, constitutional matters and disputes that may arise in the emirate and federal governments. It is the job of the Courts of First Instance ...