Regulations of Cheques in the State of Qatar.

Author: ‘Mohammad Mufid’ Ratib Qurashi

Introduction:

A cheque is a written, dated, and signed document that instructs a bank to pay the bearer a certain quantity of money. The individual or entity that writes the cheque is referred to as the payor or drawer, while the individual to whom the cheque is made is referred to as the payee. On the other side, the drawee is the bank on which the cheque is drawn. Cheques may be deposited or cashed. When a payee delivers a cheque to a bank or other financial institution, money is deducted from the payor's bank account. It is another method of instructing the bank to transfer payments from the payor's account to the payee's account. In principal, the cheque is a tool of payment and is not an instrument of credit which is considered as money and replaces it when settling obligations. However, people are misusing cheques and are using it as an instrument of credit (guarantee) for several purposes such as house rents or loans which leads to “bounced cheques”. A bounced cheque is a cheque that was presented for payment but could not be completed due to the cheque writer's insufficient money to cover the payment. When a cheque writer's account does not have sufficient amount of money, his or her bank will reject the payment request and return the cheque to the payee's bank. Rather of paying money to the recipient, the payment request "bounces." Qatari Courts are suffering from the huge number of cheques related cases due to such misuse and behavior. Therefore, new regulations were introduced lately in a try to cure this misbehavior.

Bounced cheque case procedures in Qatar:

If the cheque is returned due to insufficient cash, the payer may face punishment under Qatari law. The payee holding returned cheques can contact the prosecution's cheques cases division for the purpose of prosecuting the payer. However, if the payer made the payment at any time after the bank returned the cheque and after the payee has filed a cheque case, the payment of the cheque amount alone does not absolve the payer of criminal assaults. The payer must notify the court of the payment and the defendant must make a motion for withdrawal of prosecution. Otherwise, the Court procedures will be resumed in the absence of knowledge of the parties' settlement. Not settling the conflict relevant to the bounced cheque will lead to both civil and criminal consequences on the payer.

New Measures:

Firstly, the court, with the assistance and cooperation of the relevant authorities, has begun compiling a blacklist of those who routinely write cheques without an acceptable balance in their account and have therefore faced many convictions, as well as those who have failed to pay the cheque due amount. The Criminal Courts established a cooperation mechanism with the Qatar Central Bank to begin implementing the Article 604 of Law No. 27 of the 2006 Trade Law processes. Additionally, the Court has begun enforcing a supplementary penalty outlined in Article 604 of Law No. 27 of the 2006 Trade Law, which states that if a person is convicted of a cheque-related crime, the court may order the withdrawal of his or her cheque book and prohibit him or her from obtaining a new cheque book for a period of one year.

The Penal Code:

According to Article 357 of the Penal Code, courts will obligate the guilty person to pay the value of the cheque and the beneficiary's expenditures without requiring the convicted person to file a civil lawsuit. Moreover, offences involving cheques without balance are punished by imprisonment for a term of three months to three years and a fine of at least QR 3,000.

Further discussion in relation with the capability of payees to use the cheques as a proof for their debts and rights in confrontation of their payers will be introduced in our coming Articles. For further Information about cheques regulations in Qatar, don’t hesitate to contact any of our Professionals at Alhababi Law Firm.

Qatar’s new mandatory health insurance law, a quick overview.

Author: “Mohammad Mufid” Ratib Qurashi.

Introduction:

In one of the recent steps in the continuous journey of development in the state of Qatar, a new health insurance scheme was introduced in November 2021 by the law number 22 of 2021 regulating the health services in Qatar. As per the Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) announcement on the matter; the new health insurance system “will reduce waiting times in the government health facilities in the country and provide appointments for medical consultations within a time that meets the health needs of citizens at the highest level of quality.” i.e. will lead to the development of the health sector and the services provided to the public. The author will shed the light on the most important updates in the aforementioned Law.

The Law:

Law number 22 of the year 2021 regulating the health services in Qatar was issued in November 2021 and is supposed to enter into force in May 2022. It consists of 6 chapters including 48 articles divided as follows:

·        Chapter One: Definitions (1-5)

·        Chapter Two: Providing Healthcare services to Citizens (6-7)

·        Chapter Three: Providing Healthcare Services to Expatriates and Visitors (8-11)

·        Chapter Four: Obligations of parties in a Health insurance relation (12-24)

·        Chapter Five: Grievances committee (25)

·        Chapter Six: Penalties and Concluding Provisions (26-48)

What changed?

Expatriates, current businesses and visitors of Qatar will be affected by the new requirements provided in the Law. As per Article (8) of The Law, both Expatriates and Visitors must have health insurance in order to acquire the basic healthcare services. Business owners are enabled to provide additional healthcare services accordingly. Article (10) of The Law emphasizes on the mandatory of the health Insurance as it states that:

1.     Basic Health Insurance coverage is required for the issuance of entry permits, residence permits and expatriates employment.

2.     Basic Health Insurance coverage is required for the Renewal of both entry and residence permits.

3.     The coverage’s duration shall extend to cover the stay/ residence duration.

Article (11) of The Law provides that both Sponsors and Employers must cover Visitors / non-Qatari employees and their families in the mandatory health insurance through contracts with registered insurance companies. Article (13) of The Law obliges Employers to pay the insurance fees of the employees and their families, provide them with the Health Insurance card and demonstrate that their workers are covered by the mandatory health insurance. Same applies on sponsors. However, Visitors shall either pay their health insurance fees or prove that they have an international health insurance that is valid in Qatar.

Fines and penalties:

Article 32

Up to 300K QAR fine.

Employers / sponsors refusing to: cover their workers, pay their insurance fees or collecting any amount of money relevant to the insurance fees.

Article 31

Up to 250K QAR fine.

Registered Healthcare providers refusing to deliver any agreed-on service.

Article 30

Up to 200K QAR fine.

Insurance Companies that deal with unregistered healthcare providers or insurance mediators.

Article 29 & 28

Up to 500K QAR fine.

Unregistered healthcare providers delivering healthcare services/ any healthcare provider refusing to deliver healthcare services in cases of accidents and emergencies.

For Further information relevant to Qatar’s new mandatory Health Insurance system, don’t hesitate to contact any of our professionals at Alhababi Law firm.

Contracting Agreements in the State of Qatar

Author: “Mohammad Mufid” Ratib Qurashi

Introduction:

The author will discuss in this article contracting agreements. Relevant Qatari legislations and Professor Abd el-Razzak el-Sanhuri’s masterpiece “Al-Wasīṭ fī sharḥ al-qānūn al-madanī al-jadīd” will be used for reference and guideline in this article.

What is a contracting agreement?

In simple words, Professor Sanhuri refers to a contracting agreement as being a contract whereby one of the contract’s parties commits to manufacture a product, or to do a certain job in return to a determined wage paid by the other contract’s party. Moreover, Article (681) of the Qatari Civil Law states that a contracting agreement shall be defined as “a contract under which either party undertakes to make a thing or perform any work for the other party in consideration of a wage, without being an agent or representative of such party.” It is worth mentioning that Prof. Sanhuri differentiated between a contracting agreement, employment agreement, agency and representation agreements for several reasons that lead to different implications and consequences.

Contractor’s Obligations:

According to Prof. Sanhuri, the contractor’s main obligations can be introduced as follows:

1.    The execution of the assigned work.

2.    Handing over the work after its completion.

3.    Guarantee of work after completion.

The contractor is obliged to perform the work in accordance with the agreement. However, if it was not regulated in the agreement’s provisions, the contractor shall perform the work in accordance with the applicable practices. Consequently, the contractor shall be deemed liable for the mistakes directly resulting from him or his workers. In addition, if the contracting agreement obliged the contractor to provide work materials, partially or fully, the contractor is liable for any defects in the materials provided by himself. As mentioned earlier, handing over the work after its completion is mandatory. Methods of handing over the works after completion differ according to the nature of the agreement. Finally, after handing over the work, the contractor must guarantee the work. The duration of the guarantee differs from one case to another. However, generally the duration allowed by the legislator for claims related to guarantee is one year. It is also worth noting that in case of construction contracting agreements, the provisions that apply on the contractor or the engineer are different and are stated explicitly and in more detail in the Qatari Civil Law; 10 years guarantee duration.

Conclusion:

This article is intended to illustrate an introduction for a series of articles that will try to focus on each detail in contracting agreements; construction contracting agreements in particular. Until then, our professionals at Alhababi Law Firm are always ready to help and assist!

Handing Over in Contracting Agreements

Author: “Mohammad Mufid” Ratib Qurashi

Introduction:

After our first article discussing the definition of a contracting agreement and the contractor’s obligations in general, we continue discussing important matters regarding contracting Agreements; the provisions of handing over the subject of the agreement and penalties that result upon violating handing over provisions.

This article will be delivered on a question-answer basis to make it easier for the reader to understand the rigid legal principals and to assist them in what they might encounter in their day-to-day practice.

Is the contractor obliged to hand over the subject of the agreement? And how?

The short direct answer is yes, the contractor is obliged to hand-over the works after completion. However, practical cases are not this simple. We need to highlight that what must be handed over is the results of the work agreed upon. For example, if the owner provided the materials, then what must be handed-over by the contractor is the processed material according to the agreement. Returning the material as it was cannot be considered as a proper contracting agreement hand-over. Nevertheless, not only the materials used in the direct manufacturing of the agreement subject shall be returned, but also any supporting material or document given to the contractor in order to complete his work. To address the answer of the question properly, we need to identify the method of the handing-over process. The general rule states that enabling the owner to possess the product of the agreement and to use it without any impediment or obstacles, shall be considered sufficient, even if faced by the owner’s rejection.

Is it possible for the contractor to refuse to handing-over?

Generally, the contractor must hand-over the works on the pre-approved date agreed upon between the parties. However, if there was no such agreement, the contractor is obliged to hand-over the work by a reasonable time according to the nature of the works, the practices, and the custom of the field of works done. Nonetheless, if the owner did not fulfil his obligations towards the contractor, the contractor’s refusal of handing over shall be considered legitimate. Moreover, article (280/2) of the Qatari Civil Law speaking on the right of retention states that “However, a holder or acquirer of a thing may refuse to return it until all amounts owing thereon have been paid, including such appropriate or necessary expenses incurred by such person in connection with such thing, unless the obligation to return such thing arises from any unlawful act.” This Article doesn’t only legitimize the act of refusing to hand-over, but rather forces the owner to incur any costs related to the delay of the hand-over process.

Where to hand-over the work?

If the works agreed on in the contracting agreement were related to real estate, then the location of handing-over is the location of the real estate. However, in the case of movable materials or products, the location of the handing-over can be agreed on in the agreement. If there was no such agreement, the location is determined according to the practices and the custom of the field of works. Nevertheless, article (441) states that “Where the place for delivery is not specified, the goods shall be delivered at the seller's place of residence.” Referring to this article is considered the last resort and is only appropriate when there is no agreement nor custom that could solve the hand-over location issue.

We will continue discussing the provisions of contracting agreements in our upcoming articles. Until then, don’t hesitate to contact any of our professionals at Alhababi Law Firm for further information in regards with contracting agreements.

What’s in a Name? The Story of The New Delhi International Arbitration Centre (Amendment) Bill, 2022

Author: Vikrant Nehra

Introduction

The New Delhi International Arbitration Centre (Amendment) Bill, 2022[1] (the “Bill”) was passed by the Lok Sabha (the lower house of the Indian parliament) on 8 August 2022. Arbitration is seen as a time-efficient alternative to the largely backlogged litigations before the national courts in India. Like other developing Asian nations, India is also ambitious in becoming a robust hub for international arbitrations and somewhat challenge Singapore’s dominance in this arena.[2] The legislative changes in the Indian laws relating to arbitrations in the last decade signify India’s ambitiousness.[3] The steps in this direction are also important as India wants to attract more foreign investments and a time-efficient resolution of the disputes is an important factor for foreign investors who don’t want to be stuck in litigations before the national courts for years and in some cases decades.[4]

This article is divided into three parts. Part I briefly mentions the main and controversial provisions and objectives of The New Delhi International Arbitration Centre Act, 2019 (the “Act”). Part II deals with the legal battle to which some provisions of the Act were subjected. Part III analyses the proposed amendments and the objectives of the Act. The Conclusion provides the way forward.  

I.           The New Delhi International Arbitration Centre Act, 2019

India has thirty-six[5] domestic and regional arbitration institutions[6], however, it lacked an arbitration institution with an international reputation backed by the government. One such attempt was made back in 1995 when the International Centre for Alternative Dispute Resolution (ICADR) was set up under the aegis of the government and registered under the Societies Registration Act, 1860. However, ICADR turned out to be a disaster. It was not “able to actively engage and embrace developments in the arbitration ecosystem and create a reputation par excellence keeping pace with the dynamic nature of arbitration over more than two decades”.[7]

The High Level Committee[8] appointed by the government indicated that the ICADR has “failed to address the growing needs of institutional arbitration and also to bear optimum caseload and to become a better choice to the parties for arbitration”. ICADR had received forty-nine arbitration cases (including four international arbitrations) out of which forty-two were disposed of and the remaining seven were in progress according to its latest publicly available annual report.[9]

Therefore, The New Delhi International Arbitration Centre Act, 2019 was another attempt to bring India on the international arbitration map. As the name suggests, the objective of the Act was to provide for the establishment and incorporation of the New Delhi International Arbitration Centre (NDIAC) to create an independent and autonomous regime for institutional arbitrations and to declare NDIAC to be an institution of national importance. The Act has detailed provisions from the composition of the NDIAC to its finance, accounts and audit.    

The Act also provided for some controversial provisions for acquisition, taking over and transfer of the undertakings[10] of the ICADR and vesting them in NDIAC without interfering with its activities and without adversely affecting ICADR’s character as a Society.[11]    

II.           The Legal Battle

The basis of the government for the acquisition, taking over and transfer of the undertakings of the ICADR was that the ICADR received land and substantial funding by way of grants and other benefits from the government for constructing infrastructure and making other facilities.[12] While on the other hand, a provision was also made in the Act that all the liabilities in relation to any undertaking shall only be enforceable against the ICADR and not against the government.[13]

Aggrieved by these measures, the ICADR moved the High Court of Delhi.[14] The key stances of the ICADR before the High Court of Delhi were (i) it is an autonomous organisation[15]; (ii) the government had decided to take over without paying any compensation; (iii) the government had not paid a “single penny” to the ICADR in the last five years; (iv) the government had not followed the due principle established by law before deciding to take the ICADR’s assets.[16] On 21 July 2022, after more than three years since these matters were filed and listed twenty-five times for hearings, the petitioners sought to withdraw the petitions with liberty to file afresh after the respondents challenged the petitions for the lack of maintainability. The Court dismissed the petitions as withdrawn.

It is quite ironic to see how the establishment of an institution that is supposed to administer and facilitate arbitrations (a procedure that is perceived to be time efficient) and provide an alternative to litigations was itself stuck in litigations for years.

III.           The Amendment Bill of 2022

Though not yet established but NDIAC is supposed to be an institution of national importance. However, it was felt that the name of the institution, New Delhi International Arbitration Centre, gave an impression of being city-centric whereas it should be reflective of the aspirations to promote India as a hub of institutional arbitration and establish itself as a centre of international commercial arbitration. Moreover, there is already an arbitration institution in Delhi namely, Delhi International Arbitration Centre. Therefore, it was considered imperative to change the name of the Centre from New Delhi International Arbitration Centre to India International Arbitration Centre (IIAC) so that a unique identity of the institute of national importance as conferred on it by law is evident and reflects its true objective.[17]

Additionally, section 15(a) is proposed to be amended to include “other forms of alternative dispute resolution mechanism” such as mediation, conciliation etc.[18] Thereby giving the IIAC a more comprehensive outlook and suggesting that apart from arbitrations, it would also be facilitating and administering other forms of alternative dispute resolution. The proposed amendment to section 15(a) read with Memorandum Regarding Delegated Legislation attached to the Bill also provides for the framing of regulations for the procedure and conduct of arbitrations and other forms of dispute resolution by the IIAC by way of delegated legislation. Usually, the regulations take the form of arbitration rules of the arbitration institution. Since the Bill also provides for other forms of alternate dispute resolution, it remains to be seen if one consolidated set of rules would be framed for arbitration as well as other forms of alternative dispute resolution like some other arbitration institutions[19] have done or separate for each one of them.

An anomaly in the Act was that it provided for the utilisation of the fund of the NDIAC for the salaries and allowances of only the ‘members’[20]. Therefore, it was unclear how would the other staff of the NDIAC would be paid. It is proposed in the amendment to include “Registrar, Counsel and other officers and employees of the Centre” in section 25(3) to resolve this issue.[21]

Furthermore, the proviso to section 34(1) gave the power to the government to make orders to remove any difficulty that arises in giving effect to the provisions of the Act within two years from the date of its commencement. It is proposed in the amendment to increase this time limit from two years to five years likely due to the legal battle mentioned in the previous section.[22] This proposed amendment would be retrospective in nature when it comes into force since the above-mentioned period of two years lapsed on 25 July 2021.

Conclusions

The next step for the Bill to take the shape of an Act is to get it passed in the Rajya Sabha (the upper house of the Indian parliament) which could not be done in the last session of the parliament as it was adjourned sine die on 8 August 2022. Thereafter, the Bill needs to get the assent of the President of India. It is also quite impressive to see the swiftness of the government to introduce the Bill in the Lok Sabha on 5 August 2022 after the pending litigations in the High Court of Delhi were dismissed on 21 July 2022.

Most of the international arbitrations where one of the parties is Indian take place in Singapore and are administered by the Singapore International Arbitration Centre. One of the main factors for this is that Singapore serves as a neutral seat[23] of arbitration. For instance, if one party is Indian and the other one is Indonesian then is it unlikely that they would agree on India or Indonesia as the seat of the arbitration. They would prefer a neutral seat of arbitration like Singapore. Therefore, to make India a robust hub for international arbitrations, it is imperative to focus on the parties that are not Indian as the chances of them selecting India as a neutral seat are more.   

[1] Bill No. 186 of 2022.

[2] Singapore was chosen as the most preferred seat for arbitrations by 54% of the respondents worldwide while it was it chosen by 74% respondents in the Asia-Pacific region (2021 International Arbitration Survey, pp. 6 & 7).

[3] The (Indian) Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 was amended in 2015 and 2019.

[4] Arbitration best-suited dispute resolution mechanism for commercial world, says CJI, available at: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/arbitration-best-suited-dispute-resolution-mechanism-for-commercial-world-says-cji/articleshow/92681246.cms (last visited on August 11, 2022) (the Chief Justice of India stated that “[t]o achieve the title of an investor-friendly destination, India needed to establish and strengthen an efficacious mechanism to address these issues and ensure that business continues to operate without much hassle. This is where alternate dispute resolution and particularly arbitration plays a significant role”).

[5] Minister Kiren Rijiju's Reply |The New Delhi International Arbitration Centre (Amendment) Bill, 2022, available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=blkmeTgQIV8 (last visited on August 14, 2022).

[6] For example, Delhi International Arbitration Centre, Chandigarh Arbitration Centre, Mumbai Centre for International Arbitration.

[7] The New Delhi International Arbitration Centre Act, 2019.

[8] High Level Committee to Review the Institutionalisation of Arbitration Mechanism in India.

[9] Annual Report, 2015-16, International Centre for Alternative Dispute Resolution, available at: https://icadr.telangana.gov.in/PdfFiles/file_20190531102223.pdf (last visited on August 15, 2022).

[10] Section 8(1), The New Delhi International Arbitration Centre Act, 2019 (undertakings vested “shall be deemed to include all assets, rights, leaseholds, powers, authorities and privileges, and all property (movable or immovable), including lands, buildings, works, projects, instruments, automobiles and other vehicles, cash balances, funds, including reserve funds, investments and book debts of the Society [the ICADR] as form part of, or are relatable to, the Society and all the other rights and interest arising out of such properties as were immediately before the commencement of the New Delhi International Arbitration Centre Ordinance, 2019 (Ord. 10 of 2019) in the ownership, possession, power or control of the Society, all books of account, registers and all other documents of whatever nature relating thereto.”)

[11] See sections 7-10, The New Delhi International Arbitration Centre Act, 2019.

[12] The New Delhi International Arbitration Centre Act, 2019.

[13] Section 9, The New Delhi International Arbitration Centre Act, 2019.

[14] International Centre for Alternative Dispute Resolution v. Union of India & Ors., W.P.(C) 2236/2019 and International Centre for Alternative Dispute Resolution v. Union of India & Ors., W.P.(C) 9655/2019.

[15] The Law Minister of India also recognised that ICADR is an “independent body” in his speech in Lok Sabha on 8 August 2022 (Minister Kiren Rijiju's Reply |The New Delhi International Arbitration Centre (Amendment) Bill, 2022, available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=blkmeTgQIV8 (last visited on August 14, 2022)).

[16] Delhi HC allows dispute resolution centre to function, a week after Modi govt took over, available at: https://theprint.in/judiciary/delhi-hc-allows-dispute-resolution-centre-to-function-a-week-after-modi-govt-took-over/202781/ (last visited on August 11, 2022).

[17] Statement of Objects and Reasons, The New Delhi International Arbitration Centre (Amendment) Bill, 2022.

[18] Clause 9 of the Bill.

[19] See for eg, Rules of Conciliation and Arbitration of the Qatar International Center for Conciliation and Arbitration.

[20] Section 2(g), The New Delhi International Arbitration Centre Act, 2019 (member “means Full-time or Part-time Member of the Centre and includes the Chairperson”).

[21] Clause 12 of the Bill.

[22] Clause 15 of the Bill.

[23] Seat means the legal place of the arbitration proceedings.

Ban the Debtor from Traveling

Author: Ms. Islam Al-Bayed

The financial and commercial dealings between individuals impose the emergence of an obligation owed by both parties to this relationship, which has led to the necessity of the legislator's intervention to regulate the relationship between its two parties. Among the important matters that the legislator intervened to organize, were those controls that govern the debtor's obligation to fulfill the creditor and the guarantees that ensure that the debtor performs his obligation and performs his obligations. The texts of the Civil Procedure Code came with important provisions in this field. The most important thing for the creditor always remains to ensure that the debtor fulfills his obligation and his right to resort to the judiciary to compel the debtor to fulfill and take the necessary measures to implement the judgments issued in his favor, perhaps, among other things, urging and compelling the debtor to fulfill in the event of his stubbornness, which is the right to demand strict measures to ensure his fulfillment, one of those procedures is the right to demand that the debtor be prevented from traveling.

Therefore, the law came with texts that guarantee the right of the creditor and set conditions to ensure that this right is not abused and controlled in a way that achieves the interests of all and that reflects positively on the stability of society, which is the ultimate goal of every legislation. The Civil Code stipulates in Article 269 that:

(All the debtor's money is a guarantee for the payment of his debts, and all creditors are equal in this guarantee, except for those who have the right of priority in accordance with the law))

As it is also stated in Article 405:

((The creditor may ask the execution judge to order to prevent his debtor from traveling, if serious reasons arise from which it is feared that the debtor will flee from the litigation or smuggle his money. The debtor may appeal against the order and request its cancellation if he deposits the value of the debt in the court’s treasury or provides a sufficient guarantee with it, or if there were strong reasons to cancel it))

It is clear from the above text that the creditor may request to prevent his debtor from traveling and the decision to ban travel is issued by a decision from the judge, whether it is a civil judge before the issuance of the judgment or an execution judge after the judgment is issued and is under execution.

In order to preserve the stability of society and not to abuse the creditor and for fear of infringing the freedom of persons, the legislator stipulated that a certain reason be available to give the creditor the right to request a travel ban, and it is sufficient for one of the reasons mentioned in the article to request a travel ban order and enable the judge to decide on this request, which are:

1-     If there are serious reasons for fear that the debtor will smuggle his money.

2-     If there are serious reasons for fear that the debtor will flee from the litigation.

As soon as one of these reasons was established, the creditor requests a travel ban, and he has to prove that one of these two reasons has provided compelling evidence confirming what he has said, and he has to attach documents supporting those reasons, otherwise the rejection would be the fate of the request.

There is no doubt that this right is an exceptional right of the creditor, which restricts the debtor in freedom of movement., therefore, it was necessary that it not be expanded unless there were serious reasons for this as stated in the law. A travel ban request is submitted in accordance with the text of Article 406 of Law No. (13) of 1990, the Civil and Commercial Procedures Law, as stated in the text of the Article: -

(The travel ban order is requested with a justified petition, and in obtaining it and appealing it, the rules and procedures stipulated in part nine of book one of this law shall follow.)

As for those who are subject to this ruling, it is clear from the text of Article 405 that every debtor may be subject to this request regardless of his nationality or gender.

Article 407 states:

(The travel ban order does not prejudice the authority of the administration to terminate the residence of the non-Qatari debtor or order him to leave the country or deport him, if the public interest so requires).

This indicates the possibility of terminating the residence of the non-Qatari debtor and taking a decision to deport him, even if a travel ban was issued against him in accordance with the text of the aforementioned article, the public authority, with its supremacy, is able to take this decision and implement it by force of law, and the text came confirming this general idea, which gave it additional legitimacy.

So, the travel ban is an authority owned by the court under the law, which is implemented at the request of the creditor to ensure that the debtor implements his obligation in case of his stubbornness. The authority remains discretionary to the court, to exercise it according to what it sees fit, and while what the creditor might see in his request as fulfillment of those conditions mentioned by the legislator, the court may not see it as such.

Finally, the prohibition of travel is an exception to the principle, which is the guarantee of freedom, which the legislator restricted with those controls contained in the law and is exercised in accordance with them, and it is not permissible to expand upon it or to interpret it broadly for fear of compromising the freedom of people.

Arabic Language, Between Protection, Violation and Obligation in the State of Qatar.

Author: "Mohammad Mufid" Ratib Qurashi

Introduction:

The State of Qatar’s approach in protecting and promoting the use of Arabic language is clear; legislations obliging all governmental and non-governmental organizations to promote and protect Arabic language, in addition to hundreds of national, regional and international initiatives enhancing and supporting the use of Arabic language. In this article, the author will focus on introducing the main legal pathways of protecting Arabic language and the effect of such protection on local and foreign businesses. Moreover, the author will discuss the use of Arabic language in arbitration and arbitral proceedings in the state of Qatar.

Law number (7) of the year (2019) on protecting the Arabic language:

The law entered into force on January – 2019, consisting of one chapter with 15 articles within. The law obliges all governmental and non-governmental organizations to protect and support Arabic language in all their events and activities. The law states clearly that all the legislations in Qatar shall be written in Arabic language. Article (4) particularly clarifies that Arabic language is the official language of the following:

·        Conversations, negotiations memorandums and correspondence with foreign states, entities, regional and international organizations and official conferences.

·        Covenants, agreements and contracts where the state and other states, entities, regional and international organizations are parties of.

Internally speaking, all ministries, governmental bodies and public entities and organizations, private organizations and associations, shall conduct their meetings, discussions, publications (decisions, regulations, instructions, documents), contracts, correspondence, namings, advertising (audio and visual) in Arabic language.

In the academic field, the law provisions stipulated the urge of using Arabic language as the first language in universities and all higher education entities. Moreover, all researches, studies and dissertations shall be published in Arabic language, however and in case another language was used, an abstract in Arabic language shall be provided.

In the commercial field, the law – Article (8) - requires that businesses with commercial, financial, industrial, scientific and recreational purposes shall have Arabic names. However, international and local companies and institutions with a recognized international reputation and registered trademarks may keep the foreign name and have it written in Arabic alongside the name in the original language.

Furthermore, the law instructed that trademarks and trade names must be written in Arabic. Arabic language should be shown significantly wherever any other language is used. Data and information on Qatari products must be presented in Arabic and followed by translations into other languages.

The law also contained penalties in articles (11 and 12) whereby violating articles (2/ 2^nd paragraph), (5 / 2^nd paragraph) (8) (9) (10) is punishable with a maximum fine of QAR 50,000.

Arabic language in Arbitration and Arbitral Proceedings:

Article 22(1) of the Qatari Arbitration Law states that the parties are free to determine the language of arbitration unless their arbitration agreement precludes them from doing so. However, in case of a disagreement on the language of arbitration; the tribunal must decide on the language(s) that shall be used.

Articles (26 and 28) of the QFC (Qatar Financial Center) Arbitration Regulations state that parties can agree on the language of Arbitration, in addition to the jurisdiction given to the Tribunal in determining the language of arbitration in case the parties couldn’t agree.

Law number (7) of 2019 on protecting and supporting the use of Arabic language can be used in favor of choosing Arabic Language as the arbitration language, as it sets a clear guideline on the approaches of the legislator and the state in supporting Arabic Language in the state of Qatar, besides the constitution that clearly mentions Arabic as the first and official language of the country. The aforementioned can be used as a guideline for the tribunal and as an argument for the party favoring Arabic language in confrontation of other languages, but can’t be considered compulsory as the relevant laws and regulations of Arbitration were clear about this matter.

For further information, contact our professionals that are always willing to help at Alhababi law firm!

LLCs Managers liability in Qatar

Author: "Mohammad Mufid" Ratib Qurashi

Introduction:

The Economy of Qatar is considered one of the most powerful and competitive economies in the Middle East and specifically in the gulf region; therefore, robust commercial legislations and rulings are classified as an essential contributor in sustaining the country’s economic growth. On the 6^th of August 2015, Commercial Companies Law (CCL, hereinafter) Number 11 took effect, the CCL organizes the formation, administration and dissolution of business affairs. However, this article shall only focus on the LLC manager’s liabilities considering that the LLC is the most common form of company in the state of Qatar. In addition to the importance of the updated provisions governing the liability of managers.

Legislative sources:

In order to properly address the issue, a clarification of the fact - that the LLC manager’s liability is derived from different and non-consolidated legislative sources – must be introduced. The aforementioned sources include:

●     Civil Law, Law number 22 of 2004.

●     Trade Law, Law number 27 of 2006.

●     Commercial Companies Law, Law number 2 of 2015.

Liabilities of the manager:

A.     General liability

To start with, article 244 of the CCL is of great importance in regard to the manager’s liability since it affirms that the liability of members of the board of directors of the shareholding

(I.e. Joint-Stock) companies shall apply mutatis mutandis to LLC managers. The Qatari Court of Cassation in its judgement number 154/2019 interpreted the aforementioned article stating that the provisions- concerning liability- pertaining to the shareholding (I.e. Joint-Stock) board of directors apply on the LLC manager, hence, and according to article 113 of the CCL, the manager is liable to compensate the company, the partners and others (I.e. third parties) for each and every act of fraud, abuse of authority, violation of mandatory provisions of law or the establishment document articles and any managerial mistakes that result in a financial damage; moreover, the court explained that the beforementioned provisions were set by the Qatari legislator in order to achieve the following:

●     Establishing a more secure medium for commercial transactions.

●     Protection of shareholder funds.

●     Preventing managers from achieving personal interests or committing an act of unfair competition.

●     Preventing any financial damage caused by the managers towards the shareholders.

●     Encouraging individual investments in local companies.

It is critical to mention that the Court of Cassation judgement involved an explicit statement – in accordance with the law - of considering the manager’s liability as a liability of mandatory nature (I.e. jus cogens) prohibiting any opposing agreement and reckoning it as a void agreement.

B.     Liability in solidum with the company

The Qatari legislator didn’t confine the domain of a manager liability on the basis of lawless acts done, but also on the omission and failure of fulfilling acts or obligations required by the CCL, such as:

●     The failure of adding the term “limited liability company” to the name of the company in any occasion. -article (229) of the CCL.

●     Inadequacy in the company’s registration. -article (236) of the CCL.

●     The total or partial failure in calling for the annual general meeting. -article (250) of the CCL.

●     The failure of inviting partners due to the losses reaching half of the company’s capital. -article (298) of the CCL.

C.     Criminal liability

The manager of an LLC is not immune towards criminal liability, according to the Qatar trade law and article (837) in particular, managers can be considered criminally liable if a final judgement declared their company bankrupt and the manager was proven to commit any of the following actions:

●     The failure of keeping and/or providing the company’s financial books and records preventing the evaluation of the true financial position of the company.

●     The failure of providing required data to the court or the bankruptcy adjudicator.

●     Any act of deception or giving false information to the court or the bankruptcy adjudicator.

●     Granting creditor/creditors a special advantage.

●     Delaying or trying to delay the suspension of payments of debts or declaration of bankruptcy by selling the company’s assets at a less value than its usual price.

●     Squandering the company’s assets in non-commercial activities.

●     Participating in lawless actions or actions that violate the company’s establishment document.

Engineer’s Role

Author: Islam Albayed

To execute any certain construction project, three parties are required: the employer, the contractor, and the engineer. The employer's relation with the contractor is based on the contracting agreement, whereas the employer's relationship with the engineer is based on another separate contract, following his appointment under the contract, the engineer shall offer the essential services in planning, design, and implementation on behalf of the employer in order to optimize the contractor's work in the practical implementation of the contracted project.

 Thus, the engineer mediates the relationship between the client and the contractor through his authority to represent the employer, consider and defend his interests, the engineer plays a prominent and essential role in the project workflow, which is inevitably reflected on the completion of the project in the required manner, the engineer is responsible for monitoring and following up on the contractor's work, ensuring that it is carried out in accordance with the approved and agreed specifications and designs, guaranteeing that the best technical methods approved in the workmanship for the works are followed, as well as adhering to the agreed schedule for each part of the project, which results in a commitment to the schedule, the engineer also ensures that safety, security and public health methods are followed when carrying out the works, as well as keeping special records for the project showing all the project's details, including the workers' lists and all the supplies that arrive at the project, signing them after correcting them and referring them to the project manager for disbursement of the receivable from them.

The project manager is aware of any delays that may arise, with an analysis of the causes and a proposal for how to solve them, ensuring the efficiency of all project employees by submitting weekly and monthly periodic updates on the status of work to the project manager, including his notes, alerting the project manager of any difficulties that may arise during construction, as well as to verify the work on a regular basis, Issuing directions for re-executing any works that do not correspond to specifications or plans, as well as guaranteeing the contractor's safety and security procedures. He also checks the inventory of quantities for all materials used in the project's implementation, prepares work progress reports for reference when needed, raises the contractor's financial claims to the employer after approval, It is always required that the engineer must be of a high level of professionalism and craftsmanship, and that he exercises his control over the role of the contractor and his works with impartiality and professionalism, and that he provides convincing logical justifications for any decision taken, particularly if the contractor's works or a request for action are not satisfactory in addition to the amendments to the works, his professional opinion must be independent of the employer, so that he delivers his opinion in a way that accomplishes the employer's objectives in line with the agreed upon and professional standards and without leaving the contract's terms or the parties' agreed-upon requirements The contract is the contracting parties' law. The engineer's function and impartiality in the performance of his work play a significant role in the management of any project or contracting and its success in bringing this project to safety and completion without a disagreement between the employer and the contractor.

The engineer is the link, the connector, and the achiever of agreement between the parties. It aims, on the one hand, to implement the project in accordance with the agreed specifications and to ensure and guarantee that, and on the other, the employer's obligation to perform his obligations towards the contractor to ensure that the contractor continues to perform his work to the fullest extent possible in order to complete the project safely within the agreed timetable, In a way that is not burdensome to any of the parties, whether the contractor or the employer, the most important matter that ensures the progress of the work in the required and necessary way to bring the project to the point where it achieves the interests of all parties is to ensure that the engineer performs his work to the fullest extent, the engineer carries out his specified responsibilities as well as his obligations under the contract he enters with the employer. Thus, his responsibility is contractual, which is realized as soon as he breaches the contract signed with the employer, in addition to the perception of tort liability for any damages that may occur as a result of an engineer's work outside the scope of the contract signed with the employer.

FIFA Intellectual Property Law.

Author: “Mohammad Mufid” Ratib Qurashi

Introduction:

As the clock is ticking, the non-stop preparations for hosting the biggest sports event in the Globe are becoming more intense in the state of Qatar. FIFA World Cup 2022 is not only the biggest sports event in the world, but is rather considered one of the biggest international events, an event that gathers people from all around the world in one country. Such gigantic event needs a set of legislations and regulations to guarantee a smooth and stable hosting experience, consequently the Qatari Legislator has issued a set of legislations in regards with FIFA World Cup 2022. In this Article, the author will give a brief overview of the FIFA Intellectual Property Law (Law number 11 of 2021 on the protection of trademarks, copyrights and related rights of Fédération Internationale de Football Association “FIFA”).

Scope of Protection:

The law introduced a very important matter in article (7) as it Gives any FIFA trademark the recognition and protection even if the aforementioned were not registered officially in Qatar, the only condition requested is the registration of the trademark in any member country to the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property which Qatar is a signatory of.

The Legislator explicitly stated that the protection is valid until the end of FIFA World Cup 2022, as stipulated in article (1), particularly in the definition of FIFA owned Trademarks.

Accelerated Procedures:

Article (2) of the Law held a number of responsibilities on the designated “Office” at the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, in addition, it obliged the office to respond in relatively short periods of time as clarified below:

·       Existing (Trademark, Copy Rights and Neighboring Rights) investigation – The office must respond in (3) days starting the date of request receival. Article (3)

·       Registering the licensing contract using the Trademark in the registry - The office must take action in (15) days starting the date of request receival. Article (4)

·       Registering Trademarks - The office must act in (15) days starting the date of request receival, in addition, The Office shall not reject nor ask for modifications on the aforementioned request unless there was a previous registered trademark, however, FIFA can submit a grievance to the competent committee which must respond in (15) days. – Article (5)  

·       The Law stipulated several other responsibilities on The Office, the duration of (15) days – For The Office to respond- is not exceeded.

 Exemptions:

Article (9) exempted FIFA from submitting the statement mentioned in article (45) of the Law number (7) of 2002. Moreover, Article (10) Exempted FIFA from any fees that may incur upon Registering or depositing Trademarks, works, audio recordings, performances and radio broadcasts.

Conclusion:

After reviewing FIFA IP Law, it is clear that the legislator is willing to sustain the so-far successful road of hosting FIFA 2022 world Cup; by issuing a Law that focuses on giving FIFA more Protection in the Trademarks and Copyrights field.

For further information and inquiries regarding the FIFA IP Law, gladly contact us at Alhababi Law Firm.