Article 55 of the Saudi Law of Universities

This article sets a rule to prevent conflict of interest in all the councils provided for in the Law.

The provision: a member of any of these councils may not attend the council's discussion of matters relating to:

• himself personally;
• or those related to him up to the second degree.

The following is noted about this provision:

• it is in the form of a prohibition ("may not"), so it is an obligation with no choice;
• the prohibition concerns attending the discussion itself, not only voting; the member does not attend the discussion at all;
• it covers all councils provided for in the Law;
• the scope of kinship is defined as the second degree. The article does not detail who falls within this degree.

Examples of cases where this provision can be imagined to apply: a council discussing the member's own promotion, the appointment of one of his relatives, or a matter that concerns him personally.

The aim of the provision is to ensure the impartiality of the councils and the integrity of their decisions, so that matters are discussed without influence from the person with the interest.

This article is linked to Article 54, which provides that the language of instruction at the university is Arabic. Article 56 then makes all the councils provided for in the Law responsible for implementing it, and the Universities Affairs Council responsible for the soundness of implementation.

Anyone who believes a decision was issued with the participation of a member who had an interest in it may consult a lawyer specializing in administrative cases.