CDR Magazine quotes Alim Khamis on Qatar’s new ‘Enforcement Law No. 4 of 2024’
Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, the Amir of Qatar issued law 4 of 2024 on 4 April. Its provisions are to take effect six months after publication in the official gazette, meaning it should become effective later this month.
The goal of the 17-chapter ‘Judicial Enforcement Law’ (JEL) is to modernise and expedite civil court processes to facilitate enforcement of judgments, with provisions on new judicial infrastructure, clear procedural stipulations and adoption of technology. It will apply to all domestic civil judgments, with enforcement of foreign arbitral awards already covered under other legislation.
Alim Khamis, Partner and Head of our Qatar office, provides expert commentary for CDR Magazine and sheds light on how judgments in Qatar were enforced before the news laws...
Following the issuance of a judgment from the Court of First Instance (even prior to any appeal being lodged), a party could apply to the Enforcement Court for a judgment to be executed. However, enforcement applications could be rejected pending the exhaustion of any appeals.
The Enforcement Court would previously take a judgment and enforce it through a series of letters to other government bodies, including the Immigration Department (which may result in a travel ban), the stock exchange (suspending a company’s stocks from being traded), and the Central Bank (where a company’s bank account could be frozen).
Alim also comments on how the new Enforcement Court will be structured. The new Enforcement Court will consist of:
- A President: A judge with a rank not lower than that of a Court of Appeal judge.
- Vice-Presidents and Judges: Appointed for one-year renewable terms by the Supreme Judiciary Council.
- Administrative Staff: There will be an administrative director and enforcement officers with law enforcement authority to supervise administrative and financial affairs (Articles 2-4).
It is also notable that police officers will also be assigned to the Court, which may permit the Court to enforce its ability to impose criminal penalties faster.
- The specific judges will be appointed by the Supreme Judiciary Council, based on the proposal of the Council’s president.
Read the full piece in CDR Magazine here.
