Article 109 of the Saudi Personal Status Law
المادة 109 من نظام الأحوال الشخصية · الفصل الرابع: فسخ عقد الزواج
If the harm is not proved, discord continues and reconciliation is not possible, each spouse chooses an arbitrator from his or her family, or the court appoints them, for an arbitration period of up to 60 days.
Official text (Arabic)
This article has not been amended since the law was issued.
إذا لم يثبت وقوع الضرر الذي يتعذر معه بقاء العشرة بالمعروف، واستمر الشقاق بين الزوجين، وتعذر الإصلاح؛ فيتعين على كل واحد من الزوجين اختيار حكم من أهله خلال الأجل الذي تحدده المحكمة، وإلَّا عينت المحكمة حكمين من أهليهما إن تيسر، وإلا فمن غير أهليهما ممن تُرجى منه القدرة على الإصلاح، ويحدد لهما مدة تحكيم لا تزيد على (ستين) يوماً من تاريخ تعيينهما.
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 109 explained in plain English
This article regulates what happens when the wife requests termination for harm, the harm is not proved, and the dispute between the spouses remains.
Conditions for resorting to arbitration:
- The harm that makes continued married life in kindness impossible is not proved.
- Discord between the spouses continues.
- Reconciliation between them is not possible.
How the arbitrators are chosen:
- Each of the spouses must choose an arbitrator from his or her family within the period the court sets.
- If they do not, the court appoints two arbitrators from their families if possible.
- Otherwise, the court appoints two arbitrators from outside their families who are expected to be able to reconcile them.
Arbitration period: the arbitrators are given an arbitration period of up to 60 days from the date of their appointment.
Relation to neighboring articles: This article follows Article 108, which allows termination for harm if it is proved. Article 110 explains the arbitrators' task: they hear the spouses, investigate the causes of discord and make an effort to reconcile them, and the refusal of either spouse to deal with them does not affect their work.
To know your role in the arbitration procedures, it is advisable to consult a lawyer specializing in personal status matters.
Practical example
A wife requested termination for harm and could not prove it; the dispute continued and reconciliation was not possible. The court asked each spouse to choose an arbitrator from his or her family within a period it set. Neither chose one within the period, so the court appointed two arbitrators from their families and gave them an arbitration period of up to 60 days from the date of their appointment.
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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Active contributorFrequently asked questions about Article 109 of the Saudi Personal Status Law
When does the court send arbitrators between the spouses?
When the harm that makes continued married life in kindness impossible is not proved, discord continues, and reconciliation is not possible.
Who chooses the arbitrators?
Each spouse chooses an arbitrator from his or her family within the period the court sets; otherwise the court appoints them from their families if possible, and if not, from outside their families, persons expected to be able to reconcile them.
How long do the arbitrators have?
The arbitration period may not exceed 60 days from the date the arbitrators are appointed.
More articles on Annulment of Marriage
- Article 27
The article makes spouses bound by their conditions, and a condition gives a right to annul the marriage only if it was written in the marriage document or acknowledged by both spouses.
1- الزوجان عند شروطهما. 2- لا يكون الشرط مثبتاً لخيار فسخ عقد الزواج إلا إذا نص على الشرط كتابةً في وثيقة عقد الزواج أو أقر به الزوجان.
- Article 28
The article allows the party who stipulated a condition in the marriage contract to request annulment at any time if the other does not fulfill it, without compensation if the breach is by the husband.
إذا لم يفِ أحد الزوجين بما شرطه الآخر وفقاً لما تضمنته المادة (السابعة والعشرون) من هذا النظام؛ فللمشترط طلب فسخ عقد الزواج متى شاء إلا إذا أسقط حقه صراحة. فإذا
- Article 34
The article provides that the court annuls a defective marriage, sets its effects before and after consummation, and applies its effects to a void marriage after consummation if the spouses did not know its ruling.
1- تفسخ المحكمة عقد الزواج الفاسد، ولا يترتب عليه أي أثر قبل الدخول إلا الطلاق إذا أوقعه الزوج فيقع بائناً بينونةً صغرى. 2- يترتب على الزواج الفاسد بعد الدخول م
- Article 76
The article sets out the cases in which separation occurs between spouses: divorce, khul', annulment of the marriage contract, the death of either spouse, and li'an.
تحصل الفرقة بين الزوجين في أي من الحالات الآتية: 1- الطلاق. 2- الخُلع. 3- فسخ عقد الزواج. 4- وفاة أحد الزوجين. 5- اللعان بين الزوجين.
- Article 103
Every separation between spouses by court judgment counts as a termination (faskh), is an irrevocable separation of the lesser degree, and is not counted among the three divorces.
كل تفريق بحكم قضائي يعد فسخًا، وتكون فرقة بائنة بينونة صغرى، ولا تحسب من التطليقات الثلاث.
- Article 104
Either spouse may request termination of the marriage because of a harmful or repellent defect in the other that prevents marital relations, unless the requester knew of it at the contract or showed consent to it after learning of it.
1- لكل من الزوجين طلب فسخ عقد الزواج لعلة مضرة في الآخر أو منفرة تمنع المعاشرة الزوجية -سواء كانت العلة قبل عقد الزواج أو طرأت بعده- ما لم يكن طالب الفسخ عالماً
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.