Article 80 of the Saudi Law of the Judiciary

المادة 80 من نظام القضاء

The article gives documents issued by notaries, within their competence, evidentiary force. They are acted on before the courts without additional evidence and may be challenged only for contravening Sharia or statutory principles, or for forgery.

Official text (Arabic)

This article has not been amended since the law was issued.

الأوراق الصادرة عن كتاب العدل - بموجب الاختصاص المنصوص عليه في المادة (الرابعة والسبعين) من هذا النظام ـ تكون لها قوة الإثبات، ويجب العمل بمضمونها أمام المحاكم بلا بينة إضافية ولا يجوز الطعن فيها إلا تأسيسًا على مخالفتها لمقتضى الأصول الشرعية أو النظامية أو تزويرها.

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 80 explained in plain English

This article sets the legal value of documents issued by notaries, and it is one of the most important articles for individuals and companies.

Scope of the rule: It covers documents issued by notaries under the competence set out in Article 74, that is, notarizing contracts and recording acknowledgments. This competence does not include endowments and wills.

Effects of these documents:

Evidentiary force: They are proof of what they contain.
Their content must be acted on before the courts without additional evidence: A person who relies on a document issued by a notary is not required to produce other evidence to support it.

The limited grounds of challenge: These documents may be challenged only on one of the following grounds:

That they contravene the requirements of Sharia principles.
That they contravene the requirements of statutory principles.
That they are forged.

A challenge on any other ground is not accepted. The article does not set out the challenge procedures or deadlines.

This evidentiary weight is consistent with Article 79, which subjects notaries to judicial inspection. Article 81 moves on to the auxiliaries of the judiciary.

Anyone who believes a notarized document contravenes Sharia or statutory principles or is forged would be best advised to consult a lawyer specializing in civil and real estate cases, or in criminal cases if forgery is involved.

Practical example

Khalid bought a share in a property under a contract notarized at the notary office, and the seller then denied the contract. Under this article the notarized contract has evidentiary force and its content must be acted on before the court without Khalid being asked for additional evidence. The seller's challenge is accepted only if it is based on the contract contravening Sharia or statutory principles, or on its forgery.

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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