Article 100 of the Saudi Law of Sharia Procedure
المادة 100 من نظام المرافعات الشرعية · الباب الثامن: تنحي القضاة وردهم عن الحكم
The article regulates deciding a recusal request: the judge is informed at once, writes to the court president within 4 days, who decides, and an order rejecting the request is final.
Official text (Arabic)
This article has not been amended since the law was issued.
1- يجب على إدارة المحكمة أن تطلع القاضي فورًا على تقرير طلب الرد، وعلى القاضي خلال الأيام الأربعة التالية لاطلاعه أن يكتب إلى رئيس المحكمة عن وقائع الرد وأسبابه؛ فإن لم يكتب عن ذلك في الموعد المحدد، أو كتب مؤيدًا أسباب الرد - وكانت هذه الأسباب تصلح له بموجب النظام - أو كتب نافيًا لها وثبتت في حقه؛ فعلى رئيس المحكمة أن يصدر أمرًا بتنحيته عن نظر الدعوى.
2- إذا كان المطلوب رده رئيس محكمة الدرجة الأولى فيفصل فيه رئيس محكمة الاستئناف المختصة، أما إذا كان المطلوب رده هو رئيس محكمة الاستئناف أو أحد قضاة المحكمة العليا، فيفصل فيه رئيس المحكمة العليا.
3- إذا رفض رئيس المحكمة - بحسب الأحوال - طلب الرد، أصدر أمرًا بذلك، ويعد هذا الأمر نهائيًا.
This is the official Arabic wording, the only legally binding version. We do not translate the law itself; the explanation below is ours. Official source: Bureau of Experts at the Council of Ministers
Article 100 explained in plain English
This article sets out the procedures for deciding a recusal request after it is deposited:
- The court administration informs the judge immediately of the recusal report.
- Within the four days following his being informed, the judge must write to the president of the court about the facts of the recusal and its grounds.
The president of the court must issue an order removing the judge from hearing the case in three situations:
- If the judge did not write within the set time.
- If he wrote confirming the grounds for recusal, and these grounds are valid for recusal under the Law.
- If he wrote denying them, and they are established against him.
As for the deciding authority, it differs according to the position of the person whose recusal is requested: if the person is the president of a court of first instance, the president of the competent court of appeal decides it, and if he is the president of a court of appeal or one of the Supreme Court judges, the president of the Supreme Court decides it.
If the president of the court, as the case may be, rejects the recusal request, he issues an order to that effect, and this order is final.
This article follows Article 99, which sets the form of the recusal request. To assess the prospects of the request before submitting it, a lawyer specializing in pleadings and litigation before the courts can be consulted.
Practical example
Noura submitted a request to recuse the judge in her case, and the court administration informed him of it immediately, but he did not write to the president of the court within the four days following his being informed. In this situation the president of the court must issue an order removing him from hearing the case.
Translated from our Arabic explanation with machine assistance. For guidance only; it does not replace advice from a lawyer on your situation.
How we write and review contentA question about Article 100 of Law of Sharia Procedure?
Describe what happened and specialist lawyers answer. You can write in English.
- Completely free
- Lawyers from the directory answer
- Your name stays hidden
Civil Litigation & Compensation lawyers: ask a specialist about your case
Describe your situation briefly and we'll suggest a lawyer who specialises in this law
Civil Litigation & Compensation lawyers
Lawyers who handle this kind of case
Dr. Ali Al-Rubaie Law Office and Ittihad Al-Asr Legal Company
Active contributor
Unwan Law Firm
Frequently asked questions about Article 100 of the Saudi Law of Sharia Procedure
How many days does a judge have to respond to a request to recuse him?
He must write to the president of the court about the facts of the recusal and its grounds within the four days following his being informed of the report.
Who decides a request to recuse a court president?
If he is the president of a court of first instance, the president of the competent court of appeal decides it; if he is the president of a court of appeal or one of the Supreme Court judges, the president of the Supreme Court decides it.
Can an order rejecting a recusal request be challenged?
The article provides that the order of the president of the court rejecting the recusal request is final.
More articles on Recusal and Withdrawal of Judges
- Article 7Amended (1442 AH)
Article 7 bars bailiffs, clerks and other court aides from performing work within their duties in cases concerning themselves, their spouses or their relatives or in-laws up to the fourth degree, on pain of voidness.
لايجوز للمحضرين ولا للكتبة وغيرهم من أعوان القضاء أن يباشروا عملاً يدخل في حدود وظائفهم في الدعاوى الخاصة بهم أو بأزواجهم أو بأقاربهم أو بأصهارهم حتى الدرجة الر
- Article 94
A judge is barred from hearing a case, even if no party asks, in specified situations such as relationship or marriage ties to the fourth degree, an existing dispute, agency, interest, and prior fatwa or involvement in the case.
يكون القاضي ممنوعًا من نظر الدعوى وسماعها ولو لم يطلب ذلك أحد الخصوم في الأحوال الآتية: أ - إذا كان زوجًا لأحد الخصوم أو كان قريبًا أو صهرًا له إلى الدرجة الراب
- Article 95
A judge's work or judgment is void in the situations of bar in Article 94 even if done by agreement of the parties; if the voidness occurs in an affirmed judgment, a party may ask the Supreme Court to set it aside.
يقع باطلًا عمل القاضي أو قضاؤه في الأحوال المتقدمة في المادة (الرابعة والتسعين) من هذا النظام ولو تم باتفاق الخصوم. وإن وقع هذا البطلان في حكم مؤيد جاز للخصم أن
- Article 96
The article sets the grounds on which a judge may be recused from hearing a case, and provides that filing a recusal request stays the case until it is decided.
1- يجوز رد القاضي لأحد الأسباب الآتية: أ - إذا كان له أو لزوجته دعوى مماثلة للدعوى التي ينظرها. ب - إذا حدث له أو لزوجته خصومة مع أحد الخصوم أو مع زوجته بعد قيا
- Article 97
A judge may not refrain from deciding a case before him except where he is barred from hearing it or a ground for recusal exists, and he must inform his direct superior to be permitted to step aside and have it recorded.
لا يجوز للقاضي الامتناع من القضاء في قضية معروضة عليه، إلا إذا كان ممنوعًا من نظرها أو قام به سبب للرد. وعليه أن يخبر مرجعه المباشر للإذن له بالتنحي، ويثبت هذا
- Article 98
Article 98 permits a party to ask for a judge's recusal if a ground exists and he has not stepped aside, and sets when the request must be made and when the right is lost.
إذا قام بالقاضي سبب للرد ولم يتنح جاز للخصم طلب رده، فإن لم يكن سبب الرد من الأسباب المنصوص عليها في المادة (السادسة والتسعين) من هذا النظام، وجب تقديم طلب الرد
The texts are reproduced from the official website of the Bureau of Experts at the Council of Ministers for reference; where they differ, the officially published Arabic text prevails. This content is not legal advice.