In brief Following rounds of consultation, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has issued the new and much anticipated Federal Law No. 3 of 2022 regulating Commercial Agencies (“New Law”), repealing and replacing the longstanding Federal Law No. 18 of 1981, which has been amended many times including most recently in May 2020. The New Law introduces various changes and grants for the first time, the right for international companies that are not owned by UAE…
On 16 March 2022 in Cairo, Egypt, members of the Arab Competition Network (the “ACN”) held their first conference to launch this new network. This alert provides a high-level presentation of the ACN, as well as an overview of its mission and goals. Background and Goals of the ACN The ACN is a product of the efforts and collaboration of the Arab League and the Egyptian Competition Authority. The ACN aims to provide a platform…
In brief On 20 September 2021, the UAE has published Federal Decree Law No. 46 of 2021 on electronic transactions and trust services (the “Electronic Transactions Law”) which repeals Federal Law No. 1 of 2006 (the “Previous Law”) and reinforces the UAE’s digital transformation strategy and commitment towards a digital economy. The Electronic Transactions Law will come into effect on 2 January 2022, however, businesses will be given a one-year grace period for compliance. Under…
In brief The long awaited Federal Law No. 15 of 2020 on Consumer Protection (the Consumer Protection Law) has been issued on 10 November 2020 and is a major update which aims to revamp and repeal the old UAE consumer protection laws, being Federal Law No. 24 of 2006 (the “Old Law”). Due to the rapid rise of e-commerce globally, including in the UAE, the Consumer Protection Law now acknowledges and captures e-commerce service providers.…
In brief Earlier last week, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), issued a decree introducing a number of fundamental changes to the UAE Commercial Companies Law (CCL Amendment) and to the UAE’s approach towards foreign direct investment (FDI) in general. The CCL Amendment adopted a new general rule of, in principle, allowing foreign investors to fully own certain types of companies in the mainland of the UAE. The…