The legal profession has always been regulated and lawyers have continuously had the duty to act with within the justice of the law, with integrity, independence, and in the best interests of clients.

As the legal profession in the UAE evolves, regulation within the legal profession tightens.

Federal Decree-Law No. 34/2022: Regulating the Advocacy and Legal Consultancy Professions

The Federal Decree-Law No. 34/2022 on Regulating the Advocacy and Legal Consultancy Professions was issued on 3 October 2022 and came into force on 2 January 2023.

The key points and changes from the new law that lawyers in the UAE ought to be mindful of are:

• Non-UAE national lawyers may now appear before the UAE onshore Courts provided that they have at least 15 years of experience as an advocate, they hold a valid license in the country where they have qualified as an advocate, they are a partner in a law firm which has branches in at least three different countries, with at least 25 partners in total and 2 partners in the UAE firm. Non-UAE national lawyers right to appear before the UAE onshore Courts is limited to “specialized circuits” and does not extend to criminal, administrative, family or personal status cases for Muslim clients.
• Lawyers who are visiting the UAE and intend to practice while in the UAE must obtain a license to provide legal services.
• Lawyers must inform clients prior to accepting instructions of any case that may cause a conflict of interest with the client’s interests. Should a lawyer fail to do so, they may not take on the client.
• Should a lawyer accept an instruction from a client where there is a conflict of interest, without notifying that client, that lawyer risks imprisonment of up to 6 months and or a fine between AED 20,000 and AED 100,000.
• Lawyers have an obligation to inform their clients of the various stages within the legal proceedings of the client’s case and of the work that has been undertaken. Lawyers further have an obligation to notify clients of Court decisions and judgments and to provide advice in respect of appealing judgments and appeal deadlines.
• Lawyers may not accept instructions in respect of any dispute against a person or entity that they have previously advised or been shown documents and grounds of defence.
• Advocate lawyers can agree contingency payments for their fees with their clients for Court proceedings (where suitable, of up to 25% of the Court awarded amount). No fee would be payable by the client if the Court case was unsuccessful. 
• Should a law firm fail to renew its license for a period exceeding 90 days without a valid reason, that law firm risks suspension of up to 1 year and a fine between AED 5,000 and AED 30,000.
• Lawyers have no obligation to hand over client work product if there are outstanding client fees.
• Should a client not pay their lawyer’s fees, that client’s right to request work product is forfeited. It is also the case if a period of 5 years has lapsed from the date of the client-lawyer relationship terminating, unless an alternative agreement has been reached.
• Lawyers must not testify about facts or information which they have become aware of as a result of their profession, unless prior approval has been sought from the person from whom that information was received.
• Individuals who threaten, insult or slander a lawyer while that lawyer is providing legal services risk imprisonment of up to 1 year and or a fine between AED 50,000 and AED 300,000.
• Lawyers who breach their professional duties, commit any of the prohibitions stipulated in the new law, breach the Code of Ethics, or act in a manner which is damaging to the legal profession risk disciplinary action, including a warning, fine between AED 5,000 and AED 30,000, suspension from practicing for up to a period of 2 years, or disbarment.

Cabinet Decision No. 105/2022: On the Percentage of National Advocates and Legal Consultants in Foreign Law and Legal Consultancy Firms

Cabinet Decision No. 105/2022 on the Percentage of National Advocates and Legal Consultants in Foreign Law and Legal Consultancy Firms was issued on 28 November 2022 and came into force on 2 January 2023.

The key points and changes from the new cabinet decision that lawyers and law firms in the UAE ought to be mindful of are:

• There ought to be no less than 20% of UAE national lawyers employed by foreign law firms.
• There may be some foreign law firms which are exempt from this requirement if there is not a sufficient number of UAE national lawyers who wish to be employed by that foreign law firm.