Article 192 of the Saudi Law of Sharia Procedure
المادة 192 من نظام المرافعات الشرعية · الباب الحادي عشر: طرق الاعتراض على الأحكام
The article requires the Court of Appeal, if it overturns a judgment of lack of jurisdiction or one accepting a preliminary defense that bars proceeding with the case, to return the case to the issuing court to hear its merits.
Official text (Arabic)
This article has not been amended since the law was issued.
إذا حكمت محكمة الاستئناف بإلغاء حكم محكمة الدرجة الأولى الصادر بعدم الاختصاص، أو بقبول دفع فرعي ترتب عليه منع السير في الدعوى، وجب عليها أن تعيد القضية إلى المحكمة التي أصدرت الحكم؛ للنظر في موضوعها.
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 192 explained in plain English
This article deals with a special case: where the first-instance court's judgment did not address the substance of the dispute at all but ended on a procedural ground. The article names two kinds of such judgments:
- A judgment of lack of jurisdiction: the court decided that it is not the competent court to hear the case.
- A judgment accepting a preliminary defense that bars proceeding with the case: the court accepted a defense that stopped the case from being heard before reaching its merits.
If the Court of Appeal overturns either of these judgments, it must return the case to the court that issued the judgment to hear its merits. In this case the Court of Appeal does not itself decide the merits.
This differs from the rule in Article 191, which requires the Court of Appeal, when it sets aside a judgment in whole or in part, to rule on what it set aside after hearing the parties. The difference is that in the Article 192 situation the judgment did not reach the merits, so the case is returned to the first-instance court to hear them first.
What this means in practice: a person whose claim was dismissed for lack of jurisdiction or by accepting a preliminary defense, and who then wins the appeal, has the case go back to the same court to hear its merits. To assess whether objecting to such judgments is worthwhile, you can consult a lawyer who specializes in litigation and court procedure.
Practical example
Fahd filed a claim for a sum of money, and the court ruled that it lacked jurisdiction to hear it. Fahd appealed, and the Court of Appeal found that the court was competent and overturned the judgment. The Court of Appeal must then return the case to the court that issued the judgment to hear the merits of the claim.
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 192 of the Saudi Law of Sharia Procedure
What happens if the Court of Appeal overturns a judgment of lack of jurisdiction?
It must return the case to the court that issued the judgment to hear its merits.
Does the Court of Appeal rule on the merits if it overturns a judgment accepting a preliminary defense?
If the preliminary defense resulted in barring proceeding with the case, it returns the case to the court that issued the judgment to hear its merits.
More articles on Appeal, Cassation and Petition for Reconsideration
- 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 165
The article requires the court, after pronouncing the judgment, to inform the litigants of the means of objection and their time limits, and to inform guardians, custodians, endowment administrators and representatives of government bodies that the judgment must be appealed or reviewed.
يجب على المحكمة - بعد النطق بالحكم - إفهام الخصوم بطرق الاعتراض المقررة ومواعيدها. كما يجب عليها إفهام الأولياء والأوصياء والنظار وممثلي الأجهزة الحكومية ونحوهم
- Article 170
The article allows the court to which an objection is submitted to order a stay of provisional enforcement if it considers that the grounds of the objection may lead to the judgment being quashed and serious harm is feared from enforcement.
يجوز للمحكمة المرفوع إليها الاعتراض - متى رأت أن أسباب الاعتراض على الحكم قد تقضي بنقضه - أن تأمر بوقف التنفيذ المعجل إذا كان يخشى منه وقوع ضرر جسيم.
- Article 172
The article distinguishes between a refusal to correct, which is objected to together with the judgment itself, and a correction decision, which may be objected to independently.
إذا رفضت المحكمة التصحيح فيكون الاعتراض على ذلك مع الاعتراض على الحكم نفسه. أما القرار الذي يصدر بالتصحيح فيجوز الاعتراض عليه على استقلال بطرق الاعتراض الجائزة.
- Article 176
The article specifies three means of objection to judgments: appeal, cassation and petition for reconsideration.
طرق الاعتراض على الأحكام هي الاستئناف، والنقض، والتماس إعادة النظر.
- Article 177
The article limits the right to object to a judgment to the party against whom it was given or one who was not awarded all his claims, unless the Law provides otherwise.
لا يجوز أن يعترض على الحكم إلا المحكوم عليه، أو من لم يقض له بكل طلباته، ما لم ينص النظام على غير ذلك.
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.