Article 140 of the Saudi Law of Sharia Procedure
المادة 140 من نظام المرافعات الشرعية · الباب التاسع: إجراءات الإثبات
The article allows the court to assess whether scraping, erasure, interlineation and other physical defects deprive a paper of its value as evidence, and to question its author if it doubts the paper's authenticity.
Official text (Arabic)
This article has not been amended since the law was issued.
للمحكمة أن تقدر ما يترتب على الكشط والمحو والتحشية وغير ذلك من العيوب المادية في الورقة من إسقاط قيمتها في الإثبات.
وإذا كانت صحة الورقة محل شك في نظر المحكمة، جاز لها أن تسأل الموظف الذي صدرت منه أو الشخص الذي حررها ليبدي ما يوضح حقيقة الأمر فيها.
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 140 explained in plain English
This article deals with papers that show signs raising doubt about their soundness, such as scraping, erasure or additions between the lines.
First: physical defects in the paper. The court may assess whether physical defects in the paper cause it to lose its value as evidence. Examples of such defects, as the text mentions them, are:
- Scraping: removing part of the writing by scratching it off.
- Erasure: removing the writing.
- Interlineation: adding writing in the margin or between the lines.
- Other physical defects.
The text does not make the paper automatically void because of these defects; it leaves the court to assess their effect, so the paper may or may not lose its value as evidence depending on the court's assessment.
Second: doubt about the paper's authenticity. If the court has doubts about the authenticity of the paper, it may question the employee it came from or the person who wrote it, so that he can give whatever clarifies the truth of the matter.
This article applies to both kinds of paper defined in Article 139: official and ordinary. A challenge to an official paper other than for visible defects is governed by Article 141, under which it may be challenged only by alleging forgery, unless it states something contrary to the provisions of Islamic Sharia.
Anyone who draws up a contract or acknowledgment would therefore do well to avoid scraping and unsigned additions. A person who holds a paper with defects of this kind in an ongoing dispute may consult a lawyer who specializes in litigation and court procedure.
Practical example
In a claim in Taif, Saad submitted a bond acknowledging a debt, but the amount written in it showed traces of erasure and a new number written over it. The court may assess the effect of this erasure on the paper's value as evidence, and if it doubts the paper's authenticity, it may question the person who wrote it so that he can clarify the truth of the matter.
Translated from our Arabic explanation with machine assistance. For guidance only; it does not replace advice from a lawyer on your situation.
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Frequently asked questions about Article 140 of the Saudi Law of Sharia Procedure
Does crossing out or erasing something in a contract make it void?
The text does not provide for automatic voidness. The court may assess whether scraping, erasure and interlineation cause the paper to lose its value as evidence.
What does the court do if it doubts the authenticity of a document?
It may question the employee it came from or the person who wrote it, so that he can give whatever clarifies the truth of the matter.
More articles on Evidence Procedures
- Article 23
The article makes Arabic the official language of the courts, requires hearing non-Arabic speakers through an interpreter, and requires an approved translation from a licensed office for foreign-language papers.
اللغة العربية هي اللغة الرسمية للمحاكم؛ وتسمع المحكمة أقوال الخصوم والشهود ونحوهم من غير الناطقين باللغة العربية عن طريق مترجم، وتقدم ترجمة معتمدة من مكتب مرخص
- Article 67
If a defendant refuses to answer, or answers with something unrelated to the claim, the judge repeats the request for a proper answer three times in the same session; if the defendant persists, he treats them as refusing to answer after a warning.
إذا امتنع المدعى عليه عن الجواب كليًّا، أو أجاب بجواب غير ملاق للدعوى؛ كرر عليه القاضي طلب الجواب الصحيح ثلاثًا في الجلسة نفسها، فإذا أصر على ذلك عدّه ناكلًا بع
- Article 74
The presiding judge puts the questions to the parties, witnesses and others; members and parties may ask him to put their questions, and he may delegate this to a member.
رئيس الجلسة هو الذي يتولى توجيه الأسئلة إلى الخصوم والشهود وغيرهم ممن له صلة بالدعوى، ولأعضاء الدائرة المشتركين معه في الجلسة والخصوم أن يطلبوا منه توجيه ما يري
- Article 101
The article requires that facts to be proved during pleadings be related to the case, material to it, and admissible.
يجب أن تكون الوقائع المراد إثباتها أثناء المرافعة متعلقة بالدعوى منتجة فيها جائزًا قبولها.
- Article 102
If a party's evidence is in a place outside the court's jurisdiction, the court must delegate the judge of that place to hear and vet the evidence.
إذا كانت بينة أحد الخصوم في مكان خارج عن نطاق اختصاص المحكمة، فعليها أن تستخلف القاضي الذي يقع ذلك المكان في نطاق اختصاصه لسماع تلك البينة وتعديلها.
- Article 103
The court may withdraw from evidentiary procedures it ordered, provided it states the reasons in the record, and may decline to adopt a procedure's result, provided it states the reasons in its judgment.
للمحكمة أن تعدل عما أمرت به من إجراءات الإثبات، بشرط أن تبين أسباب العدول في الضبط. ويجوز لها كذلك ألا تأخذ بنتيجة الإجراء، بشرط أن تبين أسباب ذلك في حكمها.
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.