Slide 1

• Criminal Procedure Law: a set of legal rules governing procedures undertaken by authorities after a crime to detect it, gather evidence, identify perpetrators, issue judgments, and enforce them
• Criminal law deals with the substantive aspect of a crime, defining what constitutes crimes and specifying the penalties
• Criminal Procedure Law regulates how criminal law and other penal provisions are applied

Differences Between Criminal Procedure Law and Civil Procedure Law

• Both laws govern procedural rules
• Criminal Procedure Law regulates procedural rules for criminal cases
• Civil Procedure Law regulates procedural rules for civil, commercial, and other cases involving private relationships

Application of Civil Procedure Law vs. Criminal Procedure Law in Criminal Courts

• Criminal Procedure Law generally applies to all cases heard before criminal courts
• The exception is the application of the Civil Procedure Law in certain situations

Situations Where Civil Procedure Law Applies

• When Criminal Procedure Law explicitly provides for the application of the Civil Procedure Law, such as Article 206 regarding the competence, recusal, and disqualification of the judge
• When the Criminal Procedure Law lacks provisions on a specific matter, The Civil Procedure Law rules are applied to both criminal and civil cases

Principle of Legality and Criminal Procedure Law

• “No crime and no punishment except by law,” corresponds to the principle of procedural legality in criminal procedure law
• The legislative authority is responsible for stipulating criminal procedures and identifying the judicial bodies entrusted with handling cases
• All criminal procedures must be conducted according to the provisions of the law, and no action may be taken in contravention of the law

Stages of Criminal Procedures and Criminal Lawsuit

• Criminal procedures pass through a pre-investigation stage, an investigation stage, an accusation stage, and a trial stage
• Criminal lawsuit consists of the investigation stage, the accusation stage, and the trial stage
• The pre-investigation stage precedes the criminal case

Sources of Criminal Procedural Rule

• The Constitution includes provisions regulating freedoms, such as Article 26 prohibiting arrest, search, or detention except according to the law
• Article 82 of the Constitution provides for parliamentary immunity, preventing initiation of a criminal lawsuit against members of the Federal National Council in specific circumstances
• Ordinary laws include Criminal Procedure Law No. 38 of 2022, Civil Procedure Law No. 42 of 2022, and Federal Law No. 33 of 2022 concerning the Federal Supreme Court (e.g., Article 4)
• Regulations and decisions such as the Federal Attorney General's decisions (Nos. 182,183, 184,185 of 2022) regarding specification of crimes subject to the provisions of the criminal order

Temporal Scope of Criminal Procedure Law - General Rule

• Criminal Procedure Law applies with immediate effect; governing procedures carried out after the law's effective date, even if those procedures relate to crimes committed before that date
• A new law will apply to procedures carried out after its effective date if a crime was committed under a law that regulated a specific procedure in a certain way, but the case remains ongoing and unresolved
• The immediate application does not constitute retroactive application because the new law only applies to procedures undertaken after its effective date, doesn't affect previously carried out procedures, and applies only to ongoing (unresolved) criminal cases

Penal Code vs. Criminal Procedure Law

• The Penal Code is different; it does not apply to crimes committed prior to its effective date unless its provisions are more favorable to the accused
• On the other hand, the Criminal Procedure Law applies to procedures undertaken after its effective date, even if these are related to a crime committed before that date
• The provisions of the Penal Code apply to the crime itself, whereas the provisions of the Criminal Procedure Law apply to the criminal case
• The Criminal Procedure Law does not apply to procedures conducted before its effective date (and cases resolved before its effective date), even if its provisions are more favorable to the defendant

Exceptions to Immediate Application of Criminal Procedure Law

• Provisions amending jurisdiction with regard to cases in which pleadings were closed before the effective date of these provisions, provisions amending time limits when the time period has commenced before the effective date of the law and provisions amending methods of appeal with regard to judgments issued before the effective date of the law

Exception 1: Provisions Amending Jurisdiction

• Provisions that amend jurisdiction do not apply to cases already being considered if the stage of pleadings has been closed
• If the stage of pleadings has not been closed, the amended jurisdictional rules apply to the ongoing case, and the court must refer to the newly competent court
• In the Case of Annulment and Referral, if a judgment is annulled, and the case is referred to the Court of Appeal, the amended jurisdictional rules apply, and the competent court is determined according to those rules

Exception 2: Provisions Amending Time Limits

• Provisions amending time limits apply to criminal cases, except for those time limits that had already commenced before the effective date of procedural provisions
• For cases where no judgment has been issued and the appeal period has not started, the amended deadline applies
• For cases where a judgment has already been issued and the time limit for filing an appeal has commenced, the amendment doesn't apply, and the original period remains in effect

Exception 3: Provisions Amending Methods of Appeal

• Rules governing methods of appeal are subject to the law in force at the time the judgment is issued and not at the time the appeal is filed
• If the law in effect at the time of the judgment grants the defendant the right to appeal, and a subsequent law abolishes this right, the new law does not apply, and the defendant retains the right to appeal under the previous law

Subject-Matter Scope of Criminal Procedure Law

• The Code of Criminal Procedure applies to all crimes stipulated in the Penal Code and other laws
• The Code of Criminal Procedure also applies to retribution and blood money crimes providing they do not conflict with the provisions of Islamic Sharia

Categories Involved in Criminal Procedures

• Judges are responsible for issuing criminal judgments and have other jurisdictions, like extending pretrial detention (remand)
• Members of the Public Prosecution are responsible for investigative procedures and prosecution, overseeing the execution of criminal judgments, and are considered law enforcement agents with judicial powers
• Law enforcement agents with judicial authority are tasked with detecting crimes, identifying perpetrators, gathering information, and carrying out investigative procedures in exceptional cases
• Members of the public authorities (law enforcement official without judicial authority) don't have investigative or evidence collection powers but execute procedures based on orders from law enforcement agents with judicial authority or investigative authorities such as arrest orders

General Provisions Related to Criminal Procedure Law

• No criminal penalty may be imposed on any person unless their guilt is proven in accordance with the law (Article 2 of the Criminal Procedure Law)
• No one may be arrested, searched, detained, imprisoned, prevented from traveling, or placed under electronic surveillance except in cases and under conditions stipulated by the law (Article 2)
• Detention or imprisonment may take place only in designated locations and for the period specified in the order issued by the competent authority (Article 2)
• Physically or mentally harming the accused is prohibited, and no person may be subjected to torture or degrading treatment (Article 2)
• Evidence obtained through prohibited means is considered invalid (Article 2)
• Law enforcement agents and investigative authorities are prohibited from disclosing a victim's information (Article 7)
• Data and information related to crimes may be disclosed only according to the Attorney General's procedures and regulations (Article 7)
• All procedures related to pre-investigations, investigations, and trial sessions shall be in Arabic (Article 8)
• If a person doesn't know Arabic, the assistance of an appointed/licensed translator or technology approved by the Ministry of Justice/local judicial authority is required (Article 8)
• If a person is mute, deaf, or unable to speak, questions must be written down and their responses recorded (Article 8)
• If writing isn't possible, a sign language interpreter must be employed (Article 8)
• Law enforcement public prosecutors and the courts may enlist a translator after they have sworn to performing their duties with honesty and integrity (Article 8)

Presumption of Innocence and Burden of Proof

• The fundamental principle is the presumption of innocence, exempting the suspect or accused from proving their innocence; lies on the party asserting a deviation from this presumption
• This principle is an inherent and inalienable right, and the burden of proof always falls on the claimant or complainant
• The Public Prosecution serves as the claimant in criminal cases, so, the burden of proof rests upon the Public Prosecution
• The guilt of the accused must be proven beyond any reasonable doubt
• In cases of doubt, the accused must be acquitted

Criminal Lawsuit

• When a crime is committed, society gains the right to impose punishment on the offender through a criminal lawsuit.
• It's also known as a public lawsuit carried out by Public Prosecution
• It is filed on behalf of society as a whole to impose a penalty on the offender for the crime
• A criminal lawsuit is the state's right, represented by the Public Prosecution, to take actions to prove a crime took place assign it to the perpetrator and present them to the judiciary for imposing the correct penalty

Parties in a Criminal Lawsuit

• The Public Prosecution
• The defendant
• The civil lawsuit filed by the victim, as a derivative of the criminal lawsuit, does not make the victim a party to the criminal case

The Public Prosecution Role in Criminal Lawsuit

• They are part of the judicial authority
• They exercise functions and powers, such as investigation, accusation, perusing criminal lawsuits, supervising prisons/detention facilities, and overseeing execution of rulings
• They are exclusively responsible for initiating, filing (accusing), and pursuing the criminal lawsuit as it can not be filed by other agents except when specified by the law (Article 9 of the Code of Criminal Procedure)

Public Prosecution Responsibilities

• Initiating Criminal Lawsuit: this is done by carrying out procedures, like interrogation
• Accusation: this is done by referring the case to the court or summoning the accused to appear in cases of misdemeanors and violations
• Pursuing the Criminal Lawsuit: This is done by following up on the case after it has been filed, including submitting pleadings and appeals

Public Prosecution Powers Regarding Criminal Lawsuit

• The jurisdiction is exercised over criminal lawsuits not as the owner of the lawsuit but as an entity acting on behalf of society
• As a general rule, the Public Prosecution can’t abandon a criminal lawsuit
• Despite that, the Criminal Procedure Law grants the Public Prosecution the discretion to decide whether or not to initiate or prosecute a lawsuit
• The Public Prosecution may issue an order of no prosecution (Article 118 of the law)
• The Public Prosecution supervises law enforcement agents with limited judicial authority (Article 31 of the Criminal Procedure Law)

The Defendant (the Accused)

• This is the second party in a criminal dispute
• The UAE Criminal Procedure Law does not explicitly define the term "accused," but it can be inferred that the term applies to any individual subject to legal procedures during the pre-investigation, investigation, or trial stages
• "Accused" is used throughout all stages of the criminal lawsuit, including the pre-investigation phase, according to Article 41 and Article 46 of the law

Cases Remove the Status of "Accused" If:

• The Public Prosecution issues a decision of no grounds to proceed with criminal action against the accused (an order of no prosecution)
• A final acquittal is issued in the case filed against the accused
• The Criminal case is terminated for any reason such as extinction or dismissal (e.g., the death of the accused or the prescription of criminal prosecutions)

Investigation stage (the stage of initiating the criminal lawsuit)

• This is the starting point of the criminal lawsuit, starting when the Public Prosecution taking its capacity as a judicial authority, specifically as an investigative authority
• The initiation of the criminal lawsuit, refers to the Public Prosecution to the authority responsible under the law for investigation, performing any investigative action such as arrest, search, interrogation, or pretrial detention
• Unless an investigative acition is taken by the Public Prosecution, the criminal lawsuit is not considered to have been intitiated
• When investigative actions such arrest or search, are taken by a law enforcement agent with limited judicial authority. these do not mean that the criminal lawsuit has been initiated, these actions are a considered a part of the pre-investigation stage
• Role of the Public Prosecution and enforcement officers with limited judicial authority are differentiated by investigative procedures but Public Prosecution also holds the status of law enforcement agents with judicial authority as per the law
• Law enforcement agents focus on detecting crimes, identifying perpetrators, and and collecting the necessary information for investigation and prosecution
• The stage of pre-investigation precedes the initiation stage
• Does the reported incident that constitutes an act can be classified as a criminal offense and whether there is sufficient and appopriate evidence

Accusation stage

• Refers to bringing the lawsuit before the judiciary
• Fundamental phase of the lawsuit, carrid out by Public Prosecution
• Conducted either by refering to court in felony cases or summoning the accused for misdemeanor and violations

Trial stage

• The final and desicive stage
• All procedure carried out before the judiciary from the moment the criminal lawsuit enter the courts
• Includes all procedures undertaken before courts of all levels from all methods of appeal

Initiation of Criminal Proceedings

• The Public Prosecution, is the authority responsible under the law for investigation and prosecution
• Criminal proceedings are not considered initiated unless an investigative action is taken by the Public Prosecution
• Actions taken by law enforcement officials do not constitute initiation. Those are done by law in exceptional cases and they are considered part of the pre-investigation procedures.
• Subject matter of the criminal proceedings is the crime committed by the offender
• The Public prosecution, differientiates from the law enforcement officilas because they are involved pre investagation.