ARAB REPUBLIC OF EGYPT

LAW NO. 13 OF 1968

Issued on 7 May 1968 — Published 9 May 1968

Official Gazette, Issue No. 19 — Effective as of 9 November 1968

THE CODE OF CIVIL AND COMMERCIAL PROCEDURE

Gamal Abd al-Nasser — President of the United Arab Republic

PREAMBLE

The National Assembly has passed the following Law, which We hereby promulgate:

ENACTING ARTICLES

Article 1 — Enacting

The Code of Civil and Commercial Procedure promulgated by Law No. 77 of 1949 is hereby repealed, with the exception of Part Seven of Book One (concerning rules of evidence), Chapter Two of Part Twelve of Book One (concerning opposition), and Articles 868 to 1032 of Book Four (concerning procedures relating to personal status matters), as well as Part One of the Law on Modes and Procedures of Challenge before the Court of Cassation. The repealed provisions shall be replaced by the provisions of the accompanying Code. All other provisions conflicting with its terms are likewise repealed.

Article 2 — Enacting

Courts shall, without fee and of their own motion, transfer all pending actions that have become subject to the jurisdiction of other courts by virtue of the provisions of this Law, in the state in which they currently stand. Where any party is absent, the registry shall notify that party of the transfer order and direct that party to appear before the transferee court at the regular times.

The provisions of the preceding paragraph shall not apply to actions in which judgment has been given, or actions adjourned for the pronouncement of judgment; such actions shall remain subject to the provisions of the former enactments.

Article 3 — Enacting

Enforcement proceedings against real property shall continue under the provisions of the former law where a judgment striking the hammer has already been given under it.

Article 4 — Enacting

This Law shall be published in the Official Gazette and shall take effect six months after the date of its publication.

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1

Procedural laws shall apply to all pending actions and to all steps not yet taken, from the date they enter into force, with the following exceptions:

(1) Laws amending jurisdiction, where the date of entry into force falls after the closing of pleadings in an action.

(2) Laws amending time limits, where the time limit has already begun to run before the date of entry into force.

(3) Laws governing modes of challenge in relation to judgments given before the date of entry into force, where such laws abolish or create a mode of challenge.

Article 2

Any procedural step validly taken under a law in force at the time shall remain valid unless otherwise provided. Any newly introduced limitation periods shall not run except from the date the law introducing them enters into force.

Article 3

[As amended by Law No. 81 of 1996, effective 23 May 1996]

No action, application, or plea shall be admissible, whether under the provisions of this Code or any other law, unless the applicant has a personal, direct, and subsisting interest recognised by law. A potential interest shall, however, suffice where the purpose of the application is to take a precautionary step to ward off an impending harm or to preserve a right whose evidence is at risk of disappearing in the event of a dispute. The court shall, at any stage of the proceedings, rule of its own motion on inadmissibility where the conditions set out in the preceding two paragraphs are not satisfied. When ruling on inadmissibility for want of interest, the court may impose a procedural fine not exceeding five hundred pounds if it finds that the plaintiff abused the right to litigate.

Article 3 bis

The preceding Article shall not apply to the Public Prosecution in its statutory power to bring, intervene in, or challenge judgments in actions, nor to cases in which the law permits any person other than the holder of the right to bring an action, challenge, or complaint in protection of a personal interest recognised by law.

Article 4

Where the applicable law in personal status matters prescribes a time limit for a party to acquire a certain capacity, that party may request the adjournment of the action until the period expires, without prejudice to the right to raise defences after its expiry.

Article 5

Where the law prescribes a mandatory time limit for taking a step by way of service, the time limit shall be regarded as observed only if the opposite party is served within it.

Article 6

All service and execution shall be effected by court process servers at the request of a party, the registry, or by court order. Parties or their advocates shall direct the proceedings and submit the relevant papers to the process servers for service or execution, unless the law provides otherwise. Process servers shall be liable only for their own errors in the performance of their duties.

Article 7

[As amended by Law No. 18 of 1999, effective 16 July 1999]

No service or execution shall take place before seven o’clock in the morning or after eight o’clock in the evening, nor on official holidays, except in cases of necessity and with written authorisation from the judge of urgent matters.

Article 8

[As amended by Law No. 18 of 1999]

If the process server sees grounds for refusing to effect service — for example, if the document appears to contain material contrary to public order or morals, or is ambiguous or insufficiently identified so as to make service impracticable — the server shall immediately bring the matter before the judge of urgent matters. That judge shall, after hearing the applicant, order that the document be served, that it not be served, or that such changes as the judge sees fit be made to it. The applicant may challenge the order before the Court of First Instance in chambers, which shall give a final ruling on the challenge after hearing the process server and the applicant.

Article 9

[As amended by Law No. 95 of 1976, effective 1 October 1976]

Documents served by process servers shall include the following particulars:

(1) The date — day, month, year, and hour — of service.

(2) The name, surname, profession or occupation, and domicile of the applicant, and of the person who represents him together with that person’s name, surname, profession or occupation, and domicile, if acting for another.

(3) The name of the process server and the court in which he works.

(4) The name, surname, profession or occupation, and domicile of the person to be served; if the domicile is unknown at the time of service, the last known domicile.

(5) The name and capacity of the person to whom the copy of the document was delivered, and that person’s signature on the original as acknowledgement of receipt.

(6) The signature of the process server on both the original and the copy.

Article 10

Documents shall be delivered to the person himself or at his domicile, and may be delivered at an elected domicile in the cases specified by law. If the process server does not find the person to be served at his domicile, the server shall deliver the document to any person who states that he is the person’s agent, employee, or a member of his household — a spouse, relative, or in-law — residing with him.

Article 11

[As amended by Law No. 18 of 1999]

If the process server finds no one to whom the document may validly be delivered pursuant to the preceding Article, or if the persons named therein refuse to sign the original as acknowledgement of receipt or refuse to accept the copy, the server shall deliver the copy on the same day to the chief of the police station, district, or to the headman or sheikh of the village whose area covers the domicile of the person to be served, as applicable, after that official signs the original as acknowledgement.

Within twenty-four hours, the process server shall send a registered letter to the person to be served at his original or elected domicile, enclosing another copy of the document and informing that person that the copy has been delivered to the administrative authority. The process server shall record all of this in the original and both copies. Service shall be deemed effective from the time the copy is delivered to the person to whom delivery was lawfully made.

Article 12

Where the law requires a party to designate an elected domicile and the party fails to do so, or the information given is incomplete or incorrect, the party may be served at the registry with all documents that could properly be served at the elected domicile. Where a party abolishes his original or elected domicile without notifying his opponent, valid service may be effected at that domicile, and the copy shall, where necessary, be delivered to the administrative authority in accordance with the preceding Article.

Article 13

[Amended; item (7) declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Constitutional Court, Decision No. 49 of 30th Judicial Year (2018), to the extent it did not require that documents be established as having been personally delivered to a prisoner]

Subject to any special legislative provisions, service shall be effected as follows:

(1) Documents relating to the State shall be delivered to the competent ministers, heads of departments, or governors, or their deputies, except for statements of claim, appeal pleadings, and judgments, which shall be delivered to the State Litigation Authority or its regional branches in accordance with the local jurisdiction of each.

(2) Documents relating to public legal persons shall be delivered to their legal representative or deputy, except for statements of claim, appeal pleadings, and judgments, which shall be delivered to the State Litigation Authority or its regional branches.

(3) Documents relating to commercial companies shall be delivered at the company’s registered office to one of the general partners, the chairman of the board, the managing director, or their deputies. If the company has no registered office, delivery shall be made to one of those persons personally or at his domicile.

(4) Documents relating to civil companies, associations, private foundations, and other legal persons shall be delivered at their registered office to the person representing them under their constitutive instrument or regulations, or that person’s deputy. If they have no registered office, delivery shall be made to the representative personally or at his domicile.

(5) Documents relating to foreign companies that have a branch or agent in the Arab Republic of Egypt shall be delivered to that branch or agent.

(6) Documents relating to members of the armed forces and their equivalents shall be delivered through the Public Prosecution to the competent military judicial directorate.

(7) Documents relating to prisoners shall be delivered to the prison governor.*

(8) Documents relating to sailors and crew of commercial vessels shall be delivered to the captain.

(9) Documents relating to persons whose known domicile is abroad shall be delivered to the Public Prosecution, which shall transmit them to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for delivery through diplomatic channels. In such cases, and subject to reciprocity, the copy may also be delivered directly to the diplomatic mission of the country in which the person to be served is located, for transmission to that person. Within twenty-four hours of delivery to the Public Prosecution, the process server shall send to the person to be served at the domicile shown in the document, at the applicant’s expense, a registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt enclosing another copy and informing the addressee that the copy has been delivered to the Public Prosecution. Service shall be deemed effective from the time of delivery to the Public Prosecution, unless the document initiates a time limit running against the person served, in which case the time limit shall not begin to run until the copy is delivered at the person’s domicile abroad or until the person signs the acknowledgement, or refuses to receive the copy or to sign the original.

(10) Where the domicile of the person to be served is unknown, the document shall contain the last known domicile in Egypt or abroad, and the copy shall be delivered to the Public Prosecution.

In all cases, if the process server finds no one to whom the document may validly be delivered, or if the person to be served or his representative refuses to sign the original as acknowledgement or refuses to receive the copy, the server shall record this in the original and copies and deliver the copy to the Public Prosecution.

* The Supreme Constitutional Court declared item (7) unconstitutional to the extent it did not require proof that documents were personally delivered to a prisoner: Decision No. 49 of 30th Judicial Year, published in the Official Gazette on 13 March 2018.

Article 14

[As amended by Law No. 18 of 1999]

The court shall impose a fine of not less than one hundred pounds and not more than four hundred pounds on a person who requests service and who deliberately states an incorrect domicile for the person to be served with intent to prevent the service from reaching that person.

Article 15

Where the law fixes a time limit for appearance or for the occurrence of a step, measured in days, months, or years, the day of service or of the event that marks the commencement of the period shall not be counted. Where the period must expire before a step may be taken, the step may not be taken until after the last day of the period has passed. The period expires at the end of its last day if it is a period within which a step is to occur. Where a period is measured in hours, the starting and ending hours are calculated in the same manner. Periods measured in months or years shall be calculated by the Gregorian calendar unless the law provides otherwise.

Article 16

Where the law fixes a time limit for appearance or for the taking of a step, one day shall be added for every fifty kilometres between the place from which the journey is to begin and the place at which the step is to be taken. Fractions exceeding thirty kilometres shall be rounded up to an additional day. The travel extension shall not exceed four days. For persons whose domicile falls within border areas, the travel extension shall be fifteen days.

Article 17

The travel extension for a person whose domicile is abroad shall be sixty days. The judge of urgent matters may shorten this period having regard to ease of communications and the urgency of the situation, and the order shall be served with the document. The extension shall not apply to a person who is served in person in Egypt during his presence there; the judge of urgent matters or the court hearing the case may, however, order that the ordinary periods be extended, or deemed extended, not to exceed in either case the period to which that person would have been entitled had service been effected at his domicile abroad.

Article 18

If the last day of a period falls on an official holiday, the period shall be extended to the first working day thereafter.

Article 19

Non-compliance with the periods and procedures set out in Articles 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, and 13 shall result in nullity.

Article 20

A step shall be null where the law expressly provides for its nullity or where a defect in it has prevented the purpose of the step from being achieved. Nullity shall not be pronounced even where expressly provided for if it is established that the purpose of the step has been achieved.

Article 21

Nullity may only be invoked by a person for whose benefit it was enacted. It may not be invoked by the party who caused the nullity, in all cases except where the nullity relates to public order.

Article 22

Nullity shall be extinguished if the person for whose benefit it was enacted expressly or implicitly waives it, except in cases where the nullity relates to public order.

Article 23

A null step may be corrected even after nullity has been raised, provided the correction is made within the period prescribed by law for taking the step. Where no period is prescribed by law, the court shall fix a reasonable period for correction. The step shall have effect only from the date of its correction.

Article 24

Where a null step contains the elements of another step, it shall be valid as that other step. Where only part of a step is null, only that part is void. The nullity of a step does not entail the nullity of prior or subsequent steps, unless they are based upon it.

Article 25

A clerk shall attend with the judge at hearings and at all evidentiary proceedings to draw up and sign the record jointly with the judge; failure to comply shall render the work null.

Article 26

Process servers, clerks, and other court officers shall not perform any act within the scope of their functions in cases that concern them personally or that concern their spouses, relatives, or in-laws within the fourth degree of kinship; failure to comply shall render the act null.

Article 27

The judge of urgent matters at a Court of First Instance is the president of that court, or whoever acts in his place, or a judge designated for that purpose from among the court’s judges. At a court of minor civil matters, the judge of urgent matters is the judge of that court.

BOOK ONE: LITIGATION BEFORE COURTS

Part One: Jurisdiction

Chapter One: International Jurisdiction of the Courts

Article 28

Egyptian courts shall have jurisdiction over actions brought against an Egyptian national even if that person has no domicile or place of residence in Egypt, except in actions relating to real property situated abroad.

Article 29

Egyptian courts shall have jurisdiction over actions brought against a foreign national who has a domicile or place of residence in Egypt, except in actions relating to real property situated abroad.

Article 30

Egyptian courts shall have jurisdiction over actions brought against a foreign national who has neither a domicile nor a place of residence in Egypt in the following cases:

(1) If that person has an elected domicile in Egypt.

(2) If the action relates to property situated in Egypt, or to an obligation that arose, was performed, or was to be performed in Egypt, or to an insolvency declared in Egypt.

(3) If the action is an objection to a marriage contract to be concluded before an Egyptian notary.

(4) If the action seeks annulment of marriage, divorce, or separation and is brought by a wife who lost Egyptian nationality through marriage, provided she has a domicile in Egypt; or if the action is brought by a wife who has a domicile in Egypt against a husband who had a domicile in Egypt but abandoned his wife and established his domicile abroad after the cause for annulment, divorce, or separation arose, or who was expelled from Egypt.

(5) If the action relates to a maintenance claim by or for a mother or wife who has a domicile in Egypt, or for a minor residing in Egypt.

(6) If the action concerns the parentage of a minor residing in Egypt, or the removal, limitation, suspension, or restoration of parental authority over that minor.

(7) If the action relates to a personal status matter and the plaintiff is an Egyptian national or a foreign national with a domicile in Egypt, and the defendant has no known domicile abroad, or if the applicable national law is to be applied in the action.

(8) If the action relates to a matter of financial guardianship and the minor, the person sought to be interdicted, or the person sought to be given judicial assistance has a domicile or place of residence in Egypt, or if the last domicile or place of residence of an absent person was in Egypt.

(9) If one of the defendants has a domicile or place of residence in Egypt.

Article 31

Egyptian courts shall have jurisdiction over matters of inheritance and over actions relating to estates where the succession was opened in Egypt, the deceased was an Egyptian national, or the estate assets are wholly or partly situated in Egypt.

Article 32

Egyptian courts shall have jurisdiction to hear an action even if it does not fall within their jurisdiction under the preceding Articles, provided the defendant expressly or implicitly accepts their authority.

Article 33

Where an action within the jurisdiction of Egyptian courts is brought before them, those courts shall have jurisdiction to hear preliminary issues and incidental claims in that action, as well as any application related to the action where the proper administration of justice requires it to be heard together with the original action.

Article 34

Egyptian courts shall have jurisdiction to order provisional and precautionary measures to be executed in Egypt, even if they do not have jurisdiction over the original action.

Article 35

If the defendant does not appear and the courts of Egypt do not have jurisdiction over the action under the preceding Articles, the court shall of its own motion decline jurisdiction.

Chapter Two: Valuation of Actions

Article 36

The value of an action shall be assessed as of the date on which it is brought. The assessment shall include amounts of interest, compensation, costs, and other quantifiable ancillary items accruing by that date, as well as any claim for future rent from the date of filing to the date of judgment. In all cases, the value of any building or planting shall be taken into account where removal has been claimed. Assessment shall be based on the parties’ final claims.

Article 37

[As amended by Law No. 18 of 1999]

In assessing the value of an action, the following rules shall apply:

(1) For actions in which value is determined by reference to real property, the value of built property shall be five hundred times the basic tax assessed on it; for agricultural land, four hundred times the basic tax. If the property is not subject to tax, the court shall assess its value.

(2) Actions relating to ownership of real property, and substantive disputes relating to enforcement against real property, shall be valued at the value of the property. Actions relating to an easement shall be valued at one quarter of the value of the burdened property. Actions relating to a right of usufruct or to bare ownership shall be valued at one half of the value of the property.

(3) Actions seeking the determination or increase of a rent charge to a specified amount shall be valued at the annual amount sought, or the amount for one year, each multiplied by twenty.

(4) Possessory actions shall be valued at the value of the right to which possession relates.

(5) Actions concerning an annuity shall be valued, where the title is in dispute, at a multiple of twenty annual instalments if the annuity is perpetual, or ten annual instalments if it is for life.

(6) Actions relating to crops shall be valued according to their prices in public markets.

(7) Actions seeking the validity, annulment, or rescission of a contract shall be valued at the value of the subject-matter of the contract; in exchange contracts, at the larger of the two consideration amounts.

(8) Actions seeking the validity or annulment of a continuing contract shall be valued at the aggregate cash consideration for the full duration of the contract. If the action seeks rescission, at the cash consideration for the remaining period. If the action concerns the extension of the contract, at the cash consideration for the period to which extension is disputed.

(9) Actions between an attaching creditor and the debtor concerning the validity or nullity of an attachment on moveables shall be valued at the amount of the debt for which attachment was levied. Actions between a creditor and debtor concerning a pledge, preferential right, mortgage, or right of speciality shall be valued at the amount of the secured debt. Actions by a third party claiming entitlement to attached property shall be valued at the value of that property.

(10) Actions for authentication of signature and original forgery actions shall be valued at the value of the right evidenced in the document whose signature is sought to be authenticated or which is alleged to be forged.

Article 38

Where an action involves multiple claims arising from a single legal source, the value shall be assessed at their aggregate. If the claims arise from different legal sources, each shall be valued separately. Where an action contains claims that are subsumed in the principal claim, the value shall be assessed at the value of the principal claim alone.

Article 39

Where an action is brought by one or more plaintiffs against one or more defendants under a single legal source, the value shall be assessed at the value of the claim without regard to each party’s individual share.

Article 40

Where what is claimed is a portion of a right, the action shall be valued at the value of that portion, unless the entire right is in dispute and the portion claimed is no longer separable from it, in which case the value shall be assessed at the full value of the right.

Article 41

[As amended by Law No. 157 of 2024, effective 1 October 2024]

Where an action involves a claim that cannot be assessed under the preceding rules, its value shall be deemed to exceed two hundred thousand pounds.

Chapter Three: Subject-Matter Jurisdiction

Article 42

[As amended by Law No. 157 of 2024, effective 1 October 2024]

The court of minor civil matters shall have first-instance jurisdiction over civil and commercial actions whose value does not exceed two hundred thousand pounds, and its judgment shall be final if the value does not exceed thirty thousand pounds. This is without prejudice to any additional jurisdiction conferred on the Court of First Instance by law.

Article 43

[As amended by Law No. 157 of 2024, effective 1 October 2024]

The court of minor civil matters shall also have first-instance jurisdiction — regardless of value — and final jurisdiction — if the value does not exceed thirty thousand pounds — over:

(1) Actions relating to the use of water, and to the clearance of canals, irrigation channels, and drains.

(2) Actions for the demarcation of boundaries and the assessment of distances in relation to buildings, land, and harmful structures, where ownership or rights are not in dispute.

(3) Actions for the partition of jointly owned property.

(4) Actions for the recovery or determination of wages and salaries.

(5) Actions for authentication of signature, regardless of value.

(6) Actions for delivery of real property brought as a principal claim. The plaintiff shall notify interested parties — owners, occupiers, and holders of rights — by a process server’s document; where such parties cannot be identified after adequate investigation, notification shall be effected through the competent local authority by posting a notice in a prominent position on the property’s façade, at the police point whose district includes the property, at the village mayor’s office, and on the notice board of the competent local authority. The court shall not give judgment until notification is complete and the plaintiff has submitted supporting documents, even where the defendant has conceded the plaintiff’s claims.

Article 44

A plaintiff may not combine a possessory action with a claim to the underlying right; if combined, the possessory claim shall be forfeited. The defendant may not resist a possessory action by relying on the underlying right, and no action asserting that right shall be entertained before the possessory action has been decided and the resulting judgment enforced, unless the defendant has actually surrendered possession to the opponent.

Article 44 bis

Whenever a possessory dispute — whether civil or criminal — is submitted to the Public Prosecution, it shall issue a reasoned provisional and immediately enforceable order after hearing the parties to the dispute and conducting the necessary investigations. The order shall be issued by a member of the prosecution of at least the rank of head of prosecution. The Public Prosecution shall notify the parties of the order within three days of its issuance. Any interested party may challenge the order before the competent urgent-matters judge by ordinary proceedings within fifteen days of the notification. The judge shall give a provisional ruling affirming, modifying, or revoking the order, and may, on a party’s application, suspend the enforcement of the challenged order pending resolution of the challenge.

Article 45

A judge at the seat of a Court of First Instance shall be designated to give provisional rulings, without prejudice to the underlying right, in urgent matters where delay would be harmful. Outside the city in which the Court of First Instance has its seat, this jurisdiction belongs to the court of minor civil matters. This does not, however, preclude the court hearing the merits from also having jurisdiction over such matters when they are raised incidentally before it.

Article 46

The court of minor civil matters shall not have jurisdiction over an incidental or connected claim if, by reason of its value or nature, that claim falls outside its jurisdiction. Where such a claim is raised, the court may give judgment on the original claim alone if this does not prejudice the proper administration of justice; otherwise it shall of its own motion order the transfer of both the original claim and the incidental or connected claim, in their current state, to the competent Court of First Instance. The transfer order is not amenable to challenge.

Article 47

[As amended by Law No. 157 of 2024, effective 1 October 2024]

The Court of First Instance shall have first-instance jurisdiction over all civil and commercial actions not within the jurisdiction of the court of minor civil matters, and its judgment shall be final where the value of the action does not exceed two hundred thousand pounds. It shall also have appellate jurisdiction over judgments given at first instance by courts of minor civil matters or by the urgent-matters judge. It shall further have jurisdiction over provisional, urgent, and incidental claims, as well as claims connected to the principal claim, regardless of value or nature.

Article 48

[As amended by Law No. 76 of 2007, effective 1 October 2007]

The Court of Appeal shall have jurisdiction over appeals brought before it against first-instance judgments of Courts of First Instance, as well as judgments given by minor civil courts in actions under item (6) of Article 43.

Chapter Four: Local Jurisdiction

Article 49

Jurisdiction shall lie with the court within whose district the defendant’s domicile is situated, unless the law provides otherwise. Where the defendant has no domicile in Egypt, jurisdiction shall lie with the court of his place of residence. Where there are multiple defendants, jurisdiction shall lie with the court of the domicile of any one of them.

Article 50

[As amended by Law No. 76 of 2007, effective 1 October 2007]

In actions in rem relating to real property and possessory actions, jurisdiction shall lie with the court within whose district the property is situated, or part of it if it lies within the districts of several courts. In personal actions relating to real property, jurisdiction shall lie with the court of the district in which the property is situated, or with the court of the defendant’s domicile. By way of exception from Article 108, the court of minor civil matters within whose district the property is situated shall have exclusive jurisdiction over actions for delivery of real property.

Article 51

In minor civil actions brought against the government, local administration units, public authorities, or public undertakings, jurisdiction shall lie with the court in whose district the governorate seat is situated, subject to the preceding rules.

Article 52

In actions relating to companies, associations, whether existing or in liquidation, or private foundations, jurisdiction shall lie with the court in whose district their registered office is situated, whether the action is against the company, association, or foundation, or by the company, association, or foundation against a partner or member, or by one partner or member against another. An action may also be brought before the court in whose district a branch of the company, association, or foundation is situated, in matters connected with that branch.

Article 53

Actions relating to estates brought before partition by a creditor, or by some heirs against others, shall be within the jurisdiction of the court in whose district the deceased’s last domicile was situated.

Article 54

In insolvency matters, jurisdiction shall lie with the court that declared the insolvency.

Article 55

In commercial matters, jurisdiction shall lie with the court of the defendant’s domicile, or with the court in whose district the agreement was made and performed in whole or in part, or with the court in whose district the agreement was to be performed.

Article 56

In disputes relating to supplies, contracts, rent of premises, and wages and remuneration of workers, craftsmen, and labourers, jurisdiction shall lie with the court of the defendant’s domicile, or with the court in whose district the agreement was made or performed, provided the plaintiff’s domicile is also within that district.

Article 57

In maintenance actions, jurisdiction shall lie with the court in whose district the defendant’s domicile or the plaintiff’s domicile is situated.

Article 58

In disputes relating to insurance proceeds, jurisdiction shall lie with the court in whose district the beneficiary’s domicile or the insured property is situated.

Article 59

In actions containing a request for a provisional measure, jurisdiction shall lie with the court of the defendant’s domicile or with the court in whose district the measure is to be taken. In urgent disputes relating to the enforcement of judgments and instruments, jurisdiction shall lie with the court in whose district enforcement is carried out.

Article 60

The court hearing the original action shall have jurisdiction to decide incidental claims. However, a defendant in an action for indemnification may raise the court’s lack of jurisdiction if the defendant demonstrates that the original action was brought solely for the purpose of bringing the defendant before a court other than that of his own jurisdiction.

Article 61

Where the defendant has neither a domicile nor a place of residence in Egypt, and the competent court cannot be determined under the preceding rules, jurisdiction shall lie with the court in whose district the plaintiff’s domicile or place of residence is situated. Where the plaintiff has neither a domicile nor a place of residence, jurisdiction shall lie with the Cairo Court of First Instance.

Article 62

Where the parties have agreed to confer jurisdiction on a specific court, that court shall have jurisdiction, or alternatively the court in whose district the plaintiff’s domicile is situated, unless the law confers exclusive jurisdiction on a particular court.

Part Two: Filing and Registration of Actions

Article 63

An action shall be brought before the court by filing a statement of claim in the court registry. The statement shall contain:

(1) The date — day, month, and year.

(2) The name, surname, occupation or profession, domicile, and, where applicable, nationality of the plaintiff, and the same for the plaintiff’s representative if acting through one.

(3) The name, surname, occupation or profession, and domicile of the defendant.

(4) The subject-matter of the action and a summary statement of the grounds relied on.

(5) The court before which the action is brought.

The plaintiff shall attach to the statement all supporting documents and an explanatory memorandum. The statement shall be filed together with a number of copies equal to the number of defendants plus one.

Article 64

Attendance of the parties in minor civil actions filed directly shall be at the day and time specified in the originating pleading. The judge shall attempt to reconcile the parties except in non-arbitrable matters, urgent actions, and employment and labour disputes. If reconciliation is not achieved, the judge shall set a date for the hearing.

Article 65

In Court of First Instance and Court of Appeal actions, the registry shall, on the day the statement of claim is filed, record it in a dedicated register and note the hearing date in the presence of the plaintiff or the plaintiff’s representative, and shall deliver the original to the process server’s office the next day at the latest for service, with the original to be returned to the registry.

Article 66

The notice period is fifteen days for Courts of First Instance and Courts of Appeal, and eight days for courts of minor civil matters. For urgent actions, these periods may be reduced to three days and twenty-four hours respectively.

Article 67

[As amended] Service of the statement of claim shall be effected within three months of the date of filing, unless the court has fixed a date for the hearing.

Article 68

[As amended by Law No. 18 of 1999]

The statement of claim shall be null if it does not contain the following: the name, surname, occupation, and domicile of the plaintiff and the defendant; the subject-matter of the action; the court before which the action is brought; and the capacity in which the plaintiff sues if not suing in his own name.

Article 69

Non-compliance with the period prescribed in the preceding Article shall not entail the nullity of service of the statement of claim. Nor shall nullity follow from a defect in the notice period, without prejudice to the right of the person served to an adjournment to complete the period.

Article 70

[As amended by Law No. 95 of 1976]

The court of minor civil matters shall fix the hearing on the day the statement is filed and shall note it on the statement.

Article 71

If the plaintiff abandons the proceedings or settles with the opponent at the first hearing before the opening of pleadings, no fee shall be due on the portion of the fee already paid.

Part Three: Appearance of Parties and Their Absence

Chapter One: Appearance and Authorisation to Litigate

Article 72

On the day fixed for hearing the case, parties may appear in person or through authorised advocates; the court may also accept the attendance of their spouses or relatives or in-laws within the third degree on their behalf.

Article 73

The advocate must state that he is appearing on behalf of his client and prove his authority under the rules of the Advocates Law. The court may permit the advocate to prove his authority within a time limit, which must expire by the hearing day at the latest.

Article 74

Once a power of attorney is granted by a party, the attorney’s domicile shall be regarded as the domicile for service of all papers necessary for the progress of the action at the level at which the attorney appears.

Article 75

A litigation authority authorises the agent to carry out all acts and steps necessary for filing and pursuing the action, or for defending against it, including the taking of precautionary measures, until judgment is given on the merits at the level of proceedings for which the authority was granted, and to receive notice of that judgment and collect fees and costs.

Article 76

Without a special authority, the following acts are not valid: acknowledging the claimed right, waiving it, concluding a settlement, submitting to arbitration, accepting or waiving an oath, abandoning the proceedings, waiving the judgment or a mode of challenge, lifting an attachment, or waiving securities against payment.

Article 77

Where there are multiple agents, any one of them may act independently in the case unless the authority expressly restricts this. An agent may sub-delegate to another advocate unless expressly prohibited from doing so in the authority.

Article 78

Everything the agent declares in the presence of the client shall be treated as a declaration by the client personally, unless the client repudiates it during the hearing. The withdrawal or dismissal of the agent shall not prevent the proceedings from continuing against the agent unless the opponent is notified of the appointment of a replacement or of the party’s intention to appear in person.

Article 79

Judges, the Attorney-General, or any deputy, and any court employee, shall not act as agent in any litigation before any court — whether orally, in writing, or by giving opinions — even in proceedings before a court other than the one to which they belong; failure to comply shall render the act null.

Article 80 — omitted / Article 81

No judge, Attorney-General, deputy, or court employee may act as an agent in any action by way of oral pleading, written submissions, or advice, even if the action is before a court other than the one to which they belong; failure to comply shall render the act null.

Article 82

[As amended] Any person appearing to represent another in proceedings must satisfy the authority requirements under the Advocates Law.

Chapter Two: Absence

Article 83

Where the defendant appears at any hearing or files a memorandum in defence, the proceedings shall be treated as contested in relation to that party, even if the party later fails to appear. A plaintiff may not, at a hearing at which the opponent is absent, make new claims or alter, add to, or reduce the claims previously formulated.

Article 84

[As amended] Where the defendant fails to appear at the first hearing and the claim is not established, the court shall adjourn the matter to a further hearing and notify the defendant.

Article 85

[As amended by Law No. 18 of 1999]

A default judgment shall be given if the defendant does not appear or does not submit a defence memorandum. It shall be subject to opposition within the opposition period; opposition shall be made by ordinary proceedings before the court that gave the default judgment.

Article 86

If the absent party appears before the end of the hearing, any judgment given against that party during the same hearing shall be treated as though it had not been given.

Part Four: Intervention of the Public Prosecution

Article 87

The Public Prosecution may bring actions in the cases provided for by law, and in such cases shall have the same rights as parties.

Article 88

Except in urgent actions, the Public Prosecution shall mandatorily intervene in the following cases, failing which any judgment shall be null:

(1) Actions that it is authorised to bring itself.

(2) Actions in which the government, a public legal person, a person lacking full legal capacity, an absentee, or a missing person is a party.

(3) Matters relating to personal status, regardless of the parties.

Article 89

Except in urgent actions, the Public Prosecution may intervene in the following cases:

(1) Actions relating to persons of diminished or no legal capacity, absentees, and missing persons.

(2) Matters relating to personal status.

(3) Any matter in which it deems it appropriate to exercise its powers.

Article 90

The court may at any stage of the proceedings order the referral of the case file to the Public Prosecution where matters of public order or morals have arisen; in such cases, the intervention of the Public Prosecution shall be mandatory.

Article 91

The Public Prosecution shall be deemed to have appeared in the proceedings once it has submitted a memorandum expressing its opinion. Its attendance is not required unless the law provides otherwise. In all cases, the attendance of the Public Prosecution is not required at the pronouncement of judgment.

Article 92

In all cases where the law requires the intervention of the Public Prosecution, the registry shall notify the Public Prosecution at least one week before the hearing. If a matter requiring Public Prosecution intervention arises during the proceedings, notification shall be by court order.

Article 93

On its request, the Public Prosecution shall be granted a period of at least seven days to submit a memorandum of its submissions. This period shall run from the day on which it receives the case file containing the parties’ documents and memoranda.

Article 94

The Public Prosecution shall intervene at any stage of the case before pleadings are closed.

Article 95

In all actions in which the Public Prosecution is a joined party, after it has submitted its submissions no party may submit new memoranda; however, parties may submit to the court a written statement correcting any factual matters mentioned by the Public Prosecution.

Article 96

The Public Prosecution may challenge a judgment in cases where the law requires or permits its intervention, if the judgment contravenes a rule of public order or where the law expressly provides for it.

Part Five: Hearing Procedures and Order

Chapter One: Hearing Procedures

Article 97

[As amended by Law No. 18 of 1999]

When a case is ready for hearing, the presiding judge shall open the hearing. Cases shall be called in the order in which they appear on the cause list, except where the court decides otherwise. The judge may permit parties to be heard out of turn.

Article 98

An adjournment shall not be granted more than once for any single reason attributable to one party, and the adjournment period shall not exceed three weeks unless exceptional circumstances require otherwise. Where an adjournment is unjustified, the court shall impose a procedural fine.

Article 99

[As amended by Law No. 76 of 2007]

The court shall draw up a cause list for each session. The list shall be posted at the entrance to the courtroom before the session begins.

Article 100

Enforcement of fine judgments shall be preceded by notification to the convicted party by registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt from the registry.

Article 101

Hearings shall be public unless the court, on its own motion or on a party’s application, orders them to be held in private to preserve public order, morals, or family privacy.

Article 102

Parties shall be heard during pleadings and may not be interrupted except where they depart from the subject-matter of the case or from the requirements of decorum. The plaintiff shall speak first and the defendant last.

Article 103

[As amended] The presiding judge shall have authority over the order and management of the hearing.

Article 104

[As amended by Law No. 76 of 2007]

The court may, of its own motion or on a party’s application, order the striking out of any irregular matter from the record.

Article 105

The court may, even of its own motion, order the deletion from any document or memorandum of any language that is offensive or contrary to morals or public order.

Article 106

Subject to the Advocates Law, the presiding judge shall order a record to be drawn up of any offence committed during a session and take such measures as may be appropriate, then refer the papers to the Public Prosecution. Where a felony or misdemeanour against the court’s authority or its members is committed, the court shall refer the matter to the Public Prosecution.

Article 107

Subject to the Advocates Law, the court may try a person who commits a misdemeanour during a session amounting to a contempt against the court or its officers, and impose the penalty immediately.

Chapter Two: Order of the Hearing

Article 108

The plea of territorial incompetence, the plea for transfer of the action to another court due to the same dispute being pending before it or due to a connection between the cases, and all other pleas relating to procedural matters shall be raised together before any claim or defence is submitted in the action, failing which the right to raise them shall be forfeited.

Article 109

A plea of lack of jurisdiction based on absence of authority, the nature of the action, or its value shall be decided by the court of its own motion and may be raised at any stage of the proceedings.

Article 110

[Final paragraph declared unconstitutional by Supreme Constitutional Court (2025)]

Where a court holds that it lacks jurisdiction over a matter that falls within its subject-matter jurisdiction, it shall transfer the case to the court that has jurisdiction. The transfer order is binding on the court to which the case is transferred. Courts shall not conflict in the exercise of their respective jurisdictions, and the case shall be decided by the court to which it was transferred.

Article 111

Where the parties agree to litigate before a court other than the court before which the action is pending, the court may order the transfer to the agreed court.

Article 112

Where the same dispute is pending before two courts, the plea for transfer shall be raised before the court to which the dispute was submitted last, which shall transfer the case to the court before which it was first submitted. A plea of transfer based on connection may be raised before either court.

Article 113

Whenever a court orders a transfer under the preceding Articles, it shall fix the date at which the parties are to appear before the transferee court. The registry shall notify any absent parties by registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt.

Article 114

Nullity of statements of claim and their service, and nullity of summons arising from a defect in the service or in the statement of the court or the date of the hearing, shall be extinguished by the defendant’s appearance at the hearing or by the filing of a defence memorandum.

Article 115

[As amended by Law No. 18 of 1999]

A court shall have the power to rule on its own jurisdiction at any stage of the proceedings.

Article 116

The plea that an action is inadmissible because the matter has already been finally decided shall be ruled upon by the court of its own motion.

Part Six: Pleas, Joinder of Third Parties, Incidental Claims, and Intervention

Chapter One: Pleas

(Articles 108–116 above also cover pleas; the following continue the Part Six provisions.)

Chapter Two: Joinder of Third Parties

Article 117

A party may join in the action any person who could properly have been named as a defendant at the time the action was filed. Joinder shall follow the ordinary procedures for bringing an action, subject to Article 66.

Article 118

The court may, even of its own motion, order the joinder of any person whose participation it considers necessary in the interests of justice or to establish the truth. The court shall fix a period not exceeding three weeks for the attendance of the person ordered to be joined, and for the party required to effect joinder.

Article 119

In civil matters, the court shall adjourn the case at a party’s request to join an indemnifier where the party has demanded indemnification within eight days of service of the action or of the occurrence of the event giving rise to indemnification, or where those eight days have not yet expired at the time of the adjournment request.

Article 120

The indemnification claim and the original action shall be decided by a single judgment wherever possible; otherwise the court shall decide the indemnification claim after reserving the original action for judgment.

Article 121

If the court orders the indemnification claim to be joined with the original action, any judgment against the indemnifier shall be a judgment for a right when appropriate, even if no claims were directed against the indemnifier. The party seeking indemnification may apply to be removed from the case if the party is not personally liable.

Article 122

If the court finds no basis for the indemnification claim, it may order the party who raised it to pay compensation for the resulting delay in the original action.

Chapter Three: Incidental Claims and Intervention

Article 123

Incidental claims may be submitted by the plaintiff or defendant to the court through the ordinary filing procedures before the day of the hearing, or orally at the hearing in the presence of the opponent, with recording in the record. Incidental claims shall not be accepted after pleadings are closed.

Article 124

The plaintiff may submit the following incidental claims:

(1) Claims for the correction or modification of the original claim to meet circumstances that have arisen or come to light after the action was filed.

(2) Claims consequential on the original claim.

(3) Claims for measures relating to a provisional right or a matter that has arisen since the filing of the action.

Article 125

The defendant may submit the following incidental claims:

(1) Claims for judicial set-off, and for compensation for harm suffered from the original action or any step in it.

(2) Claims for a declaration of the existence or non-existence of a right in the case.

(3) Any claim whose resolution is necessary for the complete resolution of the original claim.

Article 126

Any interested party may intervene in the action, either in support of one of the parties or by claiming a judgment in his own favour on a connected matter. Intervention shall follow ordinary filing procedures before the day of the hearing, or by an oral application at the hearing in the presence of the parties, recorded in the record. Intervention after the closing of pleadings shall not be accepted.

Article 126 bis

An incidental claim or intervention application shall not be accepted where its subject-matter is the validity of a transaction relating to a real right in real property, unless the application is accompanied by proof that it has been published in the Real Property Registry, or by an official extract from the hearing record in which it was recorded.

Article 127

The court shall rule on all disputes relating to the admissibility of incidental claims or interventions. Incidental claims and interventions shall not delay judgment on the original action where it is ready for decision.

Part Seven: Suspension, Interruption, Lapse, Expiry by Limitation, and Abandonment of Proceedings

Article 128

[As amended by Law No. 18 of 1999]

Where a party has raised a plea of forgery against a document essential to the case, or where the court decides that the examination of the case depends on the outcome of criminal proceedings, the court shall order a stay of proceedings until the criminal matter is decided. The court shall resume the case of its own motion after the criminal matter is decided.

Article 129

Apart from cases in which the law mandatorily or permissibly requires a stay, the court may order a stay whenever the outcome of the case depends on the resolution of another issue.

Article 130

[As amended by Law No. 23 of 1992]

Proceedings shall be interrupted: by the death of one of the parties; by a party’s loss of legal capacity to litigate; by the loss of the representative capacity of the person who was conducting the proceedings on behalf of one of the parties; or upon the appointment of a liquidator for a company in liquidation.

Article 131

The case shall be deemed ready for judgment on the merits once the parties have expressed their final submissions and requests at the hearing designated for pleadings, or where provided for, upon the case being referred for judgment following the interruption of proceedings or the termination of a representative capacity.

Article 132

The interruption of proceedings shall suspend the running of all procedural time limits applicable to the parties, and shall nullify all steps taken during the interruption.

Article 133

The proceedings shall be resumed by service of a fresh statement of claim on whoever has taken the place of the party who died, lost legal capacity, or lost the representative capacity, on the application of the other party; or by service of such a statement on that other party at the request of those who have succeeded to that position.

Article 134

[As amended by Law No. 18 of 1999]

Proceedings shall lapse if the parties do not advance them for one year in cases before the Court of First Instance and courts of minor civil matters, or for six months in cases before the Court of Appeal and the Court of Cassation. The period shall run from the last valid step taken in the proceedings. The court shall rule on lapse of its own motion or on a party’s application.

Article 135

The lapse period shall not begin to run, in cases of interruption, until the day on which the party seeking a lapse judgment notified or ought to have notified the heirs of the deceased party, the party appointed to replace the one who lost legal capacity, or the party appointed to replace the one whose representative capacity has lapsed, of the existence of the action between that party and the original opponent.

Article 136

[As amended by Law No. 76 of 2007]

The lapse period shall not run during any suspension ordered by the court.

Article 137

A lapse judgment shall extinguish all judgments on evidence given in the proceedings, and shall cancel all procedural steps taken in the action including the filing of the action; however, it shall not extinguish the underlying right of action, or the final judgments given in the proceedings, or the prior procedural steps if these may independently constitute an action.

Article 138

Where proceedings lapse in an appeal, the appealed judgment shall be treated as final in all circumstances. Where proceedings lapse in a review application before the application is held to be admissible, the application itself lapses. After the application is held admissible, the normal lapse period applies to the action on the merits.

Article 139

The period prescribed for the lapse of proceedings shall run against all persons, even those who are wholly or partially lacking in legal capacity.

Article 140

[As amended by Law No. 18 of 1999]

The lapse period shall be suspended for as long as any cause preventing its running exists. Where the cause ceases, the period shall continue from where it left off.

Article 141

Abandonment of proceedings shall be effected by a process server’s document served on the opponent, by an express declaration in a signed memorandum by the abandoning party or his authorised agent acknowledged by the opponent, or by a verbal declaration at the hearing recorded in the record.

Article 142

After the defendant has submitted his claims, abandonment shall not be effective without his acceptance. However, his objection to the abandonment shall not be given effect if the defendant sought only to object to the proceedings, have the case transferred to another court, have the statement of claim declared null, or take any other step aimed at preventing the court from hearing the merits.

Article 143

Abandonment shall nullify all procedural steps, including the filing of the action, and shall order the abandoning party to pay costs; however, it shall not extinguish the underlying right of action.

Article 144

Where a party expressly or implicitly waives a procedural step or document while proceedings are pending, that step or document shall be treated as though it had not taken place.

Article 145

A waiver of a judgment shall entail a waiver of the right established by it.

Part Eight: Disqualification, Recusal, and Withdrawal of Judges

Article 146

A judge shall be disqualified from hearing a case and prohibited from deciding it, even without a challenge from any party, in the following circumstances:

(1) If the judge is a relative or in-law of one of the parties within the fourth degree.

(2) If the judge, the judge’s spouse, or any descendant of either has a personal interest in the dispute.

(3) If the judge or the judge’s spouse is a creditor, debtor, or employer of one of the parties, or if any such relationship was dissolved shortly before the action was filed.

(4) If the judge or the judge’s spouse is a guardian, trustee, or agent of a party, or has managed the party’s affairs, or is a member of the board of directors of a legal person that is a party to the action.

(5) If the judge gave testimony or expert evidence in the case, or was previously a judge or arbitrator, or gave a legal opinion, or previously represented one of the parties, or made a judicial visit in connection with the case.

(6) If there was pending between the judge or the judge’s spouse and one of the parties a legal dispute before or after the action was filed.

(7) If the judge pronounced a judgment in the case in a lower court.

Article 147

Any act performed or judgment given by the judge in the preceding circumstances shall be null, even where agreed upon by the parties. Where such nullity occurs in a judgment given by the Court of Cassation, any party may apply to that Court to annul the judgment and rehear the appeal or review.

Article 148

A judge may be challenged on any of the following grounds:

(1) If the judge or the judge’s spouse has a similar action pending, or if either of them is a party to litigation with one of the parties, or such litigation arose after the action was filed.

(2) If the judge has taken sides in the case, whether through manifestation of the judge’s opinion or through advice or testimony, or if the judge has taken steps in the action as an agent of one of the parties.

(3) If there has been a particular friendship or particular enmity between the judge and one of the parties.

(4) If the judge is a relative of one of the parties’ advocates within the second degree.

Article 149

In the circumstances listed in the preceding Article, the judge shall inform the court in chambers or the president of the court, as appropriate, of the ground for challenge in order to obtain permission to withdraw, and this shall be recorded in a special minute kept by the court.

Article 150

A judge who, for any reason other than the grounds for challenge, feels discomfort in hearing a case may put the question of withdrawal to the court in chambers or to the court president, who shall consider whether to approve the withdrawal.

Article 151 to 162

(Articles 151 through 162 and 162 bis contain detailed provisions governing the procedures for filing a challenge to a judge, the time limits for doing so, the form of the challenge petition, the judge’s response, the referral to the appropriate court for decision, the effect of challenge petitions on the proceedings, and the consequences of a challenge being dismissed. These provisions collectively regulate the recusal mechanism in a manner consistent with the independence of the judiciary and the right to a fair trial.)

Article 163

The rules and procedures governing challenges to judges shall apply mutatis mutandis to the challenge of a Public Prosecution member acting as a joined party for any of the grounds set out in Articles 146 and 148.

Article 164

[As amended] An application to recuse a judge from a particular hearing has no suspensory effect on the main proceedings unless otherwise ordered.

Article 165

Where a judge who has been challenged brings an action for compensation against the challenger or files a report against the challenger with the competent authority, the judge shall lose eligibility to give judgment in the case and shall be required to withdraw from hearing it.

Part Nine: Judgments

Chapter One: Issuance of Judgments

Article 166

Deliberations shall be secret and shall take place among the judges sitting together. No person other than the judges who heard the pleadings shall participate in the deliberations, failing which the judgment shall be null.

Article 167

During deliberations, the court shall not hear any party or advocate except in the presence of all parties, and shall not accept any papers or memoranda except with the knowledge of all parties, failing which the act shall be null.

Article 168

Judgments shall be given by a majority of opinions. If no majority is obtained and opinions divide among more than two views, the smallest group shall join one of the two views held by the larger groups; this shall be done after taking a further vote.

Article 169

The judges who participated in the deliberations shall be present for the pronouncement of the judgment. If any of them is prevented, the draft judgment signed by all of them shall be sufficient.

Article 170

[As amended] The judgment shall be pronounced publicly, in all cases in which the proceedings were held in public. Failure to pronounce in public shall render the judgment null.

Article 171

[As amended by Law No. 23 of 1992]

The reasoned draft judgment signed by the president and the judges shall be deposited before or at the time of pronouncement; failure to comply shall render the judgment null, and the party who caused the nullity shall be liable in compensation where applicable.

Article 172

Where it is necessary to adjourn pronouncement of judgment a second time, the court shall announce this at the hearing and fix the date of pronouncement. The adjournment shall be recorded in the hearing sheet and in the record. The court may not thereafter adjourn pronouncement more than once.

Article 173

Pleadings may not be reopened after a hearing has been fixed for the pronouncement of judgment except by a court order announced at the hearing and recorded in the hearing sheet and in the record.

Article 174

The judge shall pronounce judgment by reading its operative part, or its operative part together with its reasons. Pronouncement shall be in public, failing which the judgment shall be null. Judgments given during the proceedings that do not finally decide the dispute, and orders to reopen pleadings, shall be deemed to have been given in the presence of all parties who have attended a hearing or who have submitted a defence memorandum, provided the sequence of hearings has not been broken after their last appearance.

Article 174 bis

Judgments given during the proceedings that do not finally decide the dispute, and orders to reopen pleadings, shall be deemed given in the presence of all parties who attended one of the hearings or submitted a memorandum, provided the sequence of hearings has not been broken.

Article 175

In all cases, the draft judgment containing the reasons, signed by the president and the judges, shall be filed on the day of pronouncement; failure to comply shall render the judgment null, and the party who caused the nullity shall be liable in compensation where applicable.

Article 176

Judgments shall set out the reasons on which they are based, failing which they shall be null. The draft judgment shall be kept in the case file and no copies shall be issued; however, parties may inspect it at the registry.

Article 177

The original of the judgment comprising the statement of facts, reasons, and operative part shall be signed by the president of the hearing and its clerk and kept in the case file.

Article 178

[As amended] The certified copy of the judgment shall be issued by the registry within twenty-four hours for urgent cases and within seven days for other cases.

Article 179

The president and clerk of the hearing shall sign the original judgment text comprising the facts, reasons, and operative part, which shall be kept in the case file and must be prepared within twenty-four hours for urgent cases and within seven days for other cases; failure to comply shall render the party responsible liable in compensation.

Article 180

A simple copy of the original judgment may be given to any person who requests it, even if not a party to the case, after payment of the prescribed fee. The enforceable copy shall be stamped with the court’s seal, signed by the clerk, and endorsed with the enforcement formula before being delivered to the party in whose favour execution is sought.

Article 181

The enforceable copy shall be stamped with the court’s seal and signed by the clerk after it is endorsed with the enforcement formula. It shall be delivered only to the person who stands to benefit from enforcement, and only if the judgment may be enforced.

Article 182

If the registry refuses to issue a first enforceable copy, the applicant may submit a petition to the urgent-matters judge of the court that gave the judgment, to issue an order in accordance with the procedures governing petitions.

Article 183

A second enforceable copy may not be issued to the same party except where the first is lost. The court that gave the judgment shall decide on the application for a second enforceable copy in the case of the loss of the first, on a pleading served by one party on the other.

Chapter Two: Costs

Article 184

The court shall, when giving a judgment finally disposing of the proceedings before it, order of its own motion that costs be paid by the unsuccessful party. Costs shall include a contribution towards advocates’ fees.

Article 185

The court may order the successful party to bear all or part of the costs where the right was conceded before the court or where the successful party caused unnecessary expense or withheld documents from the opponent.

Article 186

If each party fails in part of its claims, the court may order each to bear its own costs, or may apportion the costs as it sees fit, or may order one party to bear all costs.

Article 187

Costs of intervention shall be charged to the intervener where it has independent claims and its intervention has been rejected or its claims dismissed.

Article 188

[As amended by Law No. 18 of 1999]

A lawyer’s fee shall be assessed and included in costs if the court is satisfied of its reasonableness.

Article 189

Costs shall be assessed in the judgment where possible; otherwise the president of the panel that gave the judgment shall assess them by order on petition at the request of the interested party, and the order shall be served on the party ordered to pay. Article 200 on lapse shall not apply to this order.

Article 190

Any party may challenge the order referred to in the preceding Article. The challenge shall be lodged with the process server on notification of the order, or at the registry of the court that gave the judgment within eight days of notification. The process server or registry shall fix the date of the hearing.

Chapter Three: Correction and Interpretation of Judgments

Article 191

The court shall correct purely material errors — typographical or arithmetic — in its judgment by an order issued of its own motion or on a party’s application without a hearing. The clerk shall endorse the correction on the original judgment and sign it together with the president of the session. The correction order shall be subject to the same modes of challenge as the judgment.

Article 192

Parties may apply to the court that gave the judgment for interpretation of any obscurity or ambiguity in its operative part. The application shall be filed by the ordinary procedures. The judgment interpreting the operative part shall be treated as supplementing and forming part of the interpreted judgment in all respects, and shall be subject to the same modes of challenge.

Article 193

If the court omits to rule on some of the substantive claims, any interested party may notify the opponent by pleading to appear before the court for the omitted claim to be considered and decided.

Part Ten: Orders on Petitions

Article 194

[As amended by Law No. 23 of 1992]

Where the law provides for orders to be given on petition, the application shall be filed with the registry, and the judge shall issue the order after examining the petition without a hearing. The judge may require such further information or documents as the judge thinks fit. The petition shall be filed in an original and two copies.

Article 195

The judge shall write the order on one of the two copies of the petition within the following day at the latest. The reasons for the order need not be given unless it diverges from a previous order, in which case reasons must be stated.

Article 196

The registry shall deliver to the applicant the second copy of the petition with the order written on it within the following day at the latest.

Article 197

[As amended by Law No. 18 of 1999]

A challenge to the order may be made by a petition to the president of the competent court within the prescribed period.

Article 198

The challenge may be raised as an ancillary matter to the original action at any stage, even orally at the hearing.

Article 199

[As amended by Law No. 23 of 1992]

The challenge shall be examined in chambers; the court shall decide it after summoning the parties and hearing them where necessary.

Article 200

The order on petition shall lapse if not submitted for enforcement within thirty days of its issuance. This lapse shall not prevent a new application.

Part Eleven: Payment Orders

Article 201

[As amended by Law No. 23 of 1992]

A payment order may be sought where the debt arises from a document and is a fixed, liquid sum. The application shall be made to the competent judge.

Article 202

The creditor shall first demand payment from the debtor with a minimum notice of five days, then apply to the judge for a payment order from the urgent-matters judge of the court of the debtor’s domicile or the division president of the Court of First Instance, unless the debtor accepts the jurisdiction of another court.

Article 203

The payment order shall be issued on a petition filed by the creditor or the creditor’s agent, to which the debt instrument and proof of the demand for payment shall be attached. The order shall be kept at the registry until the challenge period expires.

Article 204

If the judge does not wish to grant all the applicant’s requests, the judge shall refrain from issuing the order and shall fix a hearing, requiring the applicant to notify the opponent.

Article 205

The debtor shall be served in person or at his domicile with the petition and the payment order issued against him. The petition and order shall be treated as though they had not been issued if not served on the debtor within three months of the date of the order.

Article 206

[As amended; the right to challenge was extended to both parties by the Supreme Constitutional Court]

The debtor may challenge the payment order within fifteen days of service. The challenge shall be brought by ordinary proceedings before the court that issued the order.

Article 207

The challenger shall be treated as plaintiff, and the rules and procedures applicable before the court shall apply to the examination of the challenge.

Article 208

The creditor’s application for a payment order shall not be admitted unless accompanied by proof that the full fee has been paid.

Article 209

The provisions on provisional enforcement shall apply to the payment order and to any judgment given on a challenge against it.

Part Twelve: Modes of Challenge

Chapter One: General Provisions

Article 210

[As amended by Law No. 23 of 1992]

Modes of challenge against judgments are: appeal, review, and cassation.

Article 211

A judgment may only be challenged by the party against whom it was given. It may not be challenged by a party who accepted the judgment or in whose favour the totality of the claims was granted.

Article 212

[As amended by Law No. 23 of 1992]

Modes of challenge shall be exercised by filing a petition at the registry of the court whose judgment is challenged. The petition shall be signed by an advocate.

Article 213

[As amended by Law No. 18 of 1999]

Where two or more persons have been given the same judgment against them for a single indivisible obligation, or for reasons of solidarity, a challenge by one of them shall benefit the others and may be directed against all of them.

Article 214

The challenge shall be served on the opponent in person or at his domicile, and may also be served at the elected domicile shown in the service document.

Article 215

Failure to observe time limits for challenging judgments shall forfeit the right of challenge. The court shall rule on the forfeiture of its own motion or on a party’s application.

Article 216

The challenge period shall be suspended by the death of the person adjudged against, or by that person’s loss of legal capacity to litigate, or by the loss of the representative capacity of the person who was conducting the proceedings.

Article 217

If the successful party dies during the challenge period, the opponent may file the challenge and serve it on the heirs collectively without identifying them individually.

Article 218

Apart from cases of challenges filed by the Public Prosecution, only the person who files a challenge shall benefit from it, and it shall only be directed against the parties against whom it is filed.

Chapter Two: Appeal

Article 219

Parties may, except in cases excluded by statute, appeal first-instance judgments of courts at the first level that are not final judgments, within the period prescribed by law. Appeals shall be brought before the court immediately above the court whose judgment is challenged.

Article 220

Judgments given in urgent matters by any court may be appealed, regardless of value.

Article 221

[As amended by Law No. 76 of 2007]

First-instance judgments of Courts of First Instance may be appealed before the Court of Appeal.

Article 222

Judgments given within the final jurisdiction limit may also be appealed where the judgment was given in default, or where there has been a fraud, forgery, perjury, or another party’s misrepresentation that was unknown to the judge.

Article 223

The value of the action for the purpose of the appeal jurisdictional threshold shall be assessed under Articles 36 to 41. The interest adjudged shall not be counted separately if it is subsidiary to the principal claim.

Article 224

Where the defendant has filed an incidental claim, the assessment shall be based on the greater of the original and incidental claims.

Article 225

The assessment shall apply the preceding rules based on the parties’ final claims before the court of first instance.

Article 226

All judgments given before the final determination of the merits shall be assessed for appeal threshold purposes by reference to the value of the action.

Article 227

The appeal period shall be forty days, unless the law provides otherwise.

Article 228

Where a judgment was given as a result of fraud by a party, or on the basis of a forged document, perjury, or the concealment of documents by another party, the appeal period shall not begin to run until the date of the final judgment in the criminal proceedings, or the date on which the plaintiff in the appeal became aware of the fraud.

Article 229

An appeal against the judgment finally disposing of the proceedings shall automatically constitute an appeal against all prior judgments given in the case that did not finally resolve the dispute.

Article 230

An appeal shall be brought by filing a petition at the registry of the court to which the appeal is directed, in accordance with the procedures for filing an action. The petition shall contain the challenged judgment and the grounds of the appeal.

Article 231

[As amended by Law No. 18 of 1999]

The appeal petition shall be null if it does not contain the grounds of the appeal.

Article 232

An appeal transfers the case in the state in which it stood before the challenged judgment, in respect of the matters on which it was filed. The appellate court shall examine the case in light of what was submitted to the court of first instance and what is submitted before it.

Article 233

The appellate court shall examine the appeal on the basis of the evidence, pleas, and grounds of defence submitted to it — including new ones — and whatever was submitted to the court of first instance.

Article 234

Where the appellate court annuls a judgment on the original claim, it shall refer the case back to the court of first instance if the annulment is based on a procedural or formal defect, unless the case is ready for decision on the merits.

Article 235

New claims shall not be accepted on appeal. The court shall of its own motion rule on their inadmissibility.

Article 236

(Article 236 contains provisions on the scope of the court’s power in cases of appeal on points of law only.)

Article 237

Until pleadings are closed, the respondent may file a cross-appeal by ordinary procedures. The cross-appeal shall lapse if the original appeal lapses or is dismissed.

Article 238

The court shall in all cases rule on the acceptance of the abandonment of proceedings in an appeal where the appellant has waived the right or the appeal period has expired in respect of the challenged judgment.

Article 239

Acceptance of the abandonment of the original appeal shall entail the nullity of the cross-appeal, and the respondent shall bear its costs.

Article 240

The rules applicable before the court of first instance — as to procedure, pleas, incidental claims, intervention, evidence, and all other matters — shall apply to appeals, subject to what is expressly provided in this Chapter.

Chapter Three: Review

Article 241

Parties may apply for a review of judgments that have become final in the following circumstances:

(1) Where the judgment was given in default and the opponent was not duly served.

(2) Where the judgment was given based on documents proved to be forged after the judgment.

(3) Where the party against whom the judgment was given discovered, after the hearing was closed, decisive documents that the opponent had concealed.

(4) Where the judgment resulted from a misrepresentation by one of the parties.

(5) Where the judgment decides matters not claimed, or grants more than what was claimed.

(6) Where the judgment conflicts with another final judgment given between the same parties on the same subject-matter, on which grounds the later judgment may be reviewed.

Article 242

(Article 242 prescribes the time limits and court before which review applications are to be filed.)

Article 243

[Final paragraph declared unconstitutional by Supreme Constitutional Court]

The review application shall be filed at the registry of the court that gave the judgment, by the ordinary procedures for filing an action. The application shall state the grounds for review and the judgment challenged and shall be accompanied by proof of payment of the deposit.

Article 244

Filing a review application shall not suspend enforcement of the judgment.

Article 245

The court shall first decide the admissibility of the review application, then fix a hearing for pleadings on the merits without a new notification.

Article 246

(Article 246 contains provisions on the conduct of review proceedings.)

Article 247

A judgment dismissing a review application, or a judgment given on the merits after a review is accepted, shall not be subject to any further challenge.

Chapter Four: Cassation

Article 248

[As amended by Law No. 157 of 2024, effective 1 October 2024]

An appeal by way of cassation shall lie against final judgments given by the Courts of Appeal, and against final judgments given by the Courts of First Instance in personal status matters, except where the law provides otherwise.

Article 249

(Article 249 sets out the grounds for cassation: violation of law, misapplication of law, flawed reasoning, or substantial nullity of the judgment or the proceedings on which it is based.)

Article 250

The Attorney-General may file a cassation appeal on a point of law in the public interest against any final judgment — regardless of the court that gave it — where it contravenes a rule of public order or moral principles, with no effect on the rights of the parties.

Article 251

[As amended by Law No. 76 of 2007]

The Court of Cassation shall have jurisdiction over cassation appeals filed against the judgments referred to in Article 248.

Article 252

The cassation appeal period shall be sixty days.

Article 253

The cassation appeal shall be filed by a petition lodged at the registry of the Court of Cassation or at the registry of the court that gave the challenged judgment, signed by an advocate admitted to practise before the Court of Cassation.

Article 254 to 273

(Articles 254 through 273 contain detailed provisions on cassation proceedings, including: the filing fee and deposit requirements (Art. 254, 255); registration of the petition (Art. 256); service on the opposing party (Art. 257); filing of a defence memorandum by the respondent (Art. 258); cross-cassation appeals (Art. 259); intervention by other parties in the case (Art. 260); formal requirements for memoranda and documents (Art. 261); prohibition on accepting late memoranda (Art. 262); examination of the file by the rapporteur judge (Art. 263); notification of parties of the hearing date (Art. 264); decision without oral argument (Art. 265); discretion to allow oral argument (Art. 266); supplementary memoranda (Art. 267); quashing with costs (Art. 268); referral after quashing (Art. 269); costs against the unsuccessful petitioner (Art. 270); consequences of quashing (Art. 271); finality of Court of Cassation judgments (Art. 272); and application of general procedural rules to cassation proceedings (Art. 273).)

BOOK TWO: EXECUTION

Part One: General Provisions

Chapter One: General

Article 274

(Article 274 defines the enforcement court and its competence in matters of execution.)

Article 275

[As amended by Law No. 76 of 2007]

The judge of execution is a judge designated by the Minister of Justice from among the judges of the Court of First Instance in whose district the execution takes place. The judge of execution has exclusive jurisdiction over all disputes and applications arising in connection with the execution.

Article 276

For execution against moveables in the debtor’s possession, jurisdiction shall lie with the enforcement court within whose district the moveables are located.

Article 277 to 279

[As amended by Law No. 76 of 2007]

(These articles define jurisdictional rules for different categories of execution: Article 277 addresses execution on debts owed by third parties; Article 278 addresses execution on real property; Article 279 deals with cross-district enforcement issues.)

Chapter Two: The Enforcement Instrument

Article 280

Compulsory enforcement may only be carried out under an enforcement instrument in pursuit of an established, quantified, and presently due right.

Article 281

Enforcement must be preceded by service of the enforcement instrument on the debtor in person or at his domicile; failure to comply shall render the enforcement null.

Article 282

[As amended by Law No. 76 of 2007]

Enforcement instruments are: (1) enforceable copies of judgments, orders, and official instruments; (2) final arbitral awards; (3) official instruments executed before notaries; (4) extracts of marriage and birth contracts from the personal status register; and (5) any other instrument to which the law attributes enforcement effect.

Article 283

Whoever has legally or by agreement taken the place of a creditor in his right shall succeed to any enforcement steps already taken.

Article 284

Where the debtor dies or loses legal capacity, or where the representative capacity of the person conducting the proceedings lapses, before enforcement begins, enforcement must await the appointment of a successor.

Article 285

A third party may not be required to perform the obligation under the enforcement instrument, nor compelled to do so, unless the debtor has been served and the time limits fixed for performance have expired.

Chapter Three: Provisional Enforcement

Article 286

[As amended by Law No. 76 of 2007]

Judgments and orders carrying enforceable copies shall be subject to the rules governing provisional enforcement set out in this Chapter.

Article 287

Judgments may not be compulsorily enforced so long as the right to appeal them remains open, unless provisional enforcement applies.

Article 288

Provisional enforcement without security is mandatory by operation of law for judgments given in urgent matters, regardless of the court that gave them.

Article 289

Provisional enforcement is mandatory by operation of law for judgments in commercial matters, subject to the provision of security.

Article 290

Provisional enforcement may be ordered with or without security in the following cases:

(1) Cases involving the maintenance of children or spouses.

(2) Cases in which provisional enforcement is requested and the court is satisfied that delay would cause serious harm.

(3) Judgments given after a review.

Article 291

A challenge to the description of a judgment as provisionally enforceable may be raised before the appellate court by ordinary proceedings; this shall not suspend enforcement.

Article 292

The appellate court, or the court hearing the challenge, may in all cases and at the request of any interested party order a stay of execution if it is apparent from the circumstances that the challenge to the judgment is likely to succeed, or where enforcement would cause serious harm that would be difficult to remedy.

Chapter Four: Enforcement of Foreign Judgments

Article 293 to 295

(These articles contain the rules for the exequatur — the procedure for obtaining an enforcement order for a foreign judgment in Egypt, including the application to the competent Court of First Instance.)

Article 296

Judgments and orders given in a foreign country may be ordered to be enforced in Egypt under the same conditions as apply in that country for the enforcement of Egyptian judgments.

Article 297

The application for an enforcement order shall be submitted to the Court of First Instance within whose district enforcement is sought, following the ordinary procedures.

Article 298

An enforcement order shall not be made unless the following are verified:

(1) The Egyptian courts do not have exclusive jurisdiction over the dispute, and the foreign court had jurisdiction under its own law.

(2) The parties to the case were duly summoned and properly represented.

(3) The judgment has become res judicata under the law of the court that gave it.

(4) The judgment does not conflict with a judgment or order previously given by the Egyptian courts.

(5) The judgment does not contain anything contrary to Egyptian public order or morals.

Article 299

The preceding Articles shall apply to arbitral awards given in a foreign country, with the additional requirement that the award be given pursuant to a valid arbitration agreement and by duly appointed arbitrators.

Article 300

Official instruments drawn up in a foreign country may be ordered to be enforced on the same conditions as apply in that country, provided they are not contrary to Egyptian public order or morals.

Article 301

The rules set out in the preceding Articles shall not prejudice any international treaties concluded or to be concluded by Egypt.

Chapter Five: Place of Enforcement

Article 302

At any stage of the proceedings before the sale, the parties may deposit a sum of money equal to the debts, costs, and charges outstanding to have the attachment lifted.

Article 303

The debtor may, as an urgent matter before the judge of execution at any stage, request a reduction in the quantities of attached moveables if they exceed what is needed to pay the creditor.

Article 304

Where the value of the right for which attachment was levied is disproportionate to the value of the attached assets, the debtor may request the judge of execution to restrict the attachment to a portion of the assets sufficient to pay the creditor.

Article 305

The following shall not be subject to attachment: what is necessary for the debtor, the debtor’s spouse, relatives, and in-laws in the direct line living with him in shared accommodation as essential household furnishings, bedding, clothing, and provisions for one month.

Article 306

The following may not be attached except to recover their purchase price, maintenance costs, or a prescribed maintenance payment:

(1) Tools and equipment needed by the debtor for the exercise of the debtor’s personal trade or profession.

(2) What is necessary for the training of craftsmen and artisans.

(3) Books and instruments used by a doctor, lawyer, engineer, or other liberal professional for the practice of the profession.

Article 307

Amounts judicially ordered or provisionally fixed for maintenance or temporary alimony may not be attached.

Article 308

Property given or bequeathed with a condition prohibiting attachment on it may not be attached by creditors of the donee or legatee unless the attachment is to recover the price of the property or costs related to it.

Article 309

Wages and salaries may not be attached except up to one quarter; in cases of competing claims, half is reserved for maintenance debts. This restriction does not apply to attachment by the State for amounts due to it.

Article 310

Where an attachment is levied on crops, harvests, or other moveables to be delivered to the State or its agencies, the attachment shall be subject to the rules governing the distribution of such assets.

Article 311

The debtor and judges who participated in any manner in enforcement proceedings or connected matters may not purchase, directly or indirectly, the property sold in such proceedings.

Chapter Six: Execution Disputes

Article 312

[As amended by Law No. 76 of 2007]

Any application or dispute relating to enforcement shall be brought before the judge of execution in whose district enforcement takes place.

Article 313

A bona fide tender shall not stay enforcement if the tender is disputed.

Article 314

If the parties are absent and the judge orders the claim struck off, the suspensory effect of the claim on enforcement shall cease.

Part Two: Attachments

Chapter One: Precautionary and Enforcement Attachment of Moveables

Article 315

[As amended by Law No. 76 of 2007]

A creditor may levy precautionary attachment on the moveables of a debtor in the following cases:

(1) Where there is a risk that the debtor will dissipate the debtor’s assets.

(2) Where the debtor does not have a known domicile in Egypt.

(3) Where the debtor is about to travel abroad and the creditor’s right is threatened.

Article 316

A creditor may levy precautionary attachment on the moveables of a debtor where certain specified circumstances of urgency are present and the creditor holds a cognisable right, even if not yet quantified.

Article 317

A lessor of real property may levy precautionary attachment on the moveables of a sub-lessee in the leased premises to secure rent due from the sub-lessee.

Article 318

An owner of moveable property may levy precautionary attachment on it when it is in the possession of another.

Article 319

In the preceding cases, precautionary attachment shall not be levied except in pursuit of an established right that is presently due.

Article 320 to 397

(Articles 320 through 397 contain the detailed procedural provisions governing attachment of moveables, including: Article 320 — rules and procedures for precautionary attachment; Article 321 — simultaneous enforcement actions; Article 322 — conversion of precautionary attachment to enforcement attachment after judgment; Articles 323–324 — special rules for lessors’ attachments; Articles 325–346 — attachment of debts owed by third parties, including the declaration of indebtedness, obligations of the garnishee, satisfaction, and consequences of default; Articles 347–397 — enforcement attachment of moveables, including appointment of a custodian, sale procedures, advertisement, the auction, and redemption procedures.)

Chapter Two: Attachment of Shares, Bonds, Revenue, and Interests

Article 398

Bearer shares and negotiable shares shall be attached under the procedures applicable to moveables in the debtor’s possession.

Article 399

Registered income, registered shares, and dividends due from legal persons, as well as founders’ shares and proceeds of intellectual property rights, shall be attached as debts owed by third parties.

Article 400

Shares, bonds, and other instruments referred to in the preceding Articles shall be sold through a bank or broker in the manner determined by the judge of execution.

Part Three: Enforcement Against Real Property

Chapter One: General

Article 401

[As amended by Law No. 76 of 2007]

A creditor holding an enforcement instrument for an established, quantified, and due right may, after serving a notice of demand, apply to the judge of execution to begin execution against real property belonging to the debtor.

Article 402

A notice of expropriation shall be registered at each real property registration office within whose district the real property described in the notice is located.

Article 403

Where a prior registration of a notice has been made over the same property, the registration office shall endorse the new notice in the margin of the earlier registration.

Article 404

Registration of the notice shall operate to place the real property under attachment.

Article 405

Any disposal by the debtor, occupier, or mortgage guarantor of the real property after registration of the notice, or any mortgage, pledge, or charge constituted over it, shall not be enforceable against creditors who participated in the proceedings.

Article 406 to 413

(These articles govern: the rights of lessees of the attached property (Arts. 408–410); the position of purchasers who acquired the property before registration (Arts. 411–413).)

Chapter Two: Conditions of Sale

Article 414

The party initiating the enforcement proceedings shall deposit a list of conditions of sale at the registry of the enforcement court within ninety days of registration of the notice.

Article 415 to 422

(These articles govern the contents of the conditions of sale, the accompanying documents, the procedure for examining objections, and the consequences of non-compliance.)

Chapter Three: Enforcement Sale Procedures

Article 423 to 458

(These articles contain comprehensive provisions governing: the procedure for the enforcement sale; advertisement of the sale; postponement of the sale; conduct of the auction; adjudication of the bid; payment of the purchase price; the judgment on the striking of the hammer; registration of the judgment; the effect of registration in extinguishing charges and encumbrances on the property; appeal against the judgment; interruption of proceedings; and the action for recovery of ownership.)

Chapter Four: Special Sales

Article 459

The sale of the property of a bankrupt, of a person lacking legal capacity where authorised by the court, of an absentee, or of property held in common for which partition is impracticable without harm, shall be by way of public auction under the supervision of the enforcement judge.

Article 460 to 468

(These articles govern the conditions of sale and procedures for the special categories of sale referred to in Article 459, including the sale of jointly owned property ordered by the court, and voluntary judicial sales.)

Part Four: Distribution of Proceeds

Article 469

Once money has been attached at the debtor’s premises, or the attached property has been sold, or fifteen days have elapsed since an attachment of a debt owed by a third party without the debtor depositing the amount attached, the creditor shall apply for distribution.

Article 470

If the proceeds of enforcement are sufficient to satisfy all attaching creditors and those treated as parties, each shall be paid in full.

Article 471

If there are multiple creditors and the proceeds are insufficient for all, a distribution schedule shall be drawn up.

Article 472 to 493

(Articles 472 through 493 contain provisions on: the procedures for drawing up and challenging a distribution schedule; the payment of ranked creditors; the treatment of disputes over ranking; the deposit of disputed amounts in court pending resolution; the effect of insolvency on distribution proceedings; finality of distribution after satisfaction of creditors; genuine tender and formal offer procedures (Articles 487–493).)

BOOK THREE: MISCELLANEOUS PROCEDURES AND DISPUTES

Part Two: Action Against Judges and Public Prosecution Members

Article 494

Judges and members of the Public Prosecution may be subject to an action for liability in the following cases:

(1) Fraud, gross fraud, or denial of justice.

(2) Any act giving rise to personal liability specified in the law.

Article 495

[As amended by Law No. 18 of 1999]

An action for judicial liability shall be brought by petition filed at the registry of the court of appeal within whose district the respondent judge serves, within three months of the occurrence of the cause of action.

Article 496

The court shall decide the relevance of the grounds invoked and the admissibility of the action after hearing the applicant and the respondent judge.

Article 497

Where the action is held admissible against a judge of a Court of First Instance or a member of the Public Prosecution at that level, the case shall be tried before the Court of Appeal.

Article 498

A judge shall be disqualified from hearing the action from the date of the ruling that the liability action is admissible.

Article 499

(Article 499 deals with the referral procedure where the action is against a Court of Appeal judge.)

Article 500

The only mode of challenge available against the judgment in a liability action is cassation.

Part Three: Arbitration

Article 501

[As amended by Law No. 27 of 1994 on Arbitration in Civil and Commercial Matters]

(Note: Part Three of Book Three on arbitration was substantially replaced by the dedicated Arbitration Law No. 27 of 1994. Articles 501 through 513 of this Code continue to apply in matters not governed by Law No. 27 of 1994, including domestic arbitration in disputes for which no separate arbitration law applies.)

Articles 502 to 513

(These articles contain the original provisions of the Code governing arbitration agreements, the appointment of arbitrators, the conduct of arbitration proceedings, the form and substance of the award, the exequatur procedure for giving the award enforcement effect, and the modes of challenge available against the award. In practice, these provisions apply alongside the Arbitration Law No. 27 of 1994 in matters within its scope.)

BOOK FOUR: PROCEDURES RELATING TO PERSONAL STATUS MATTERS

(Note: Articles 868 to 1032 of this Book were largely replaced or amended by Law No. 1 of 2000 on Procedures of Litigation in Personal Status Matters, which comprehensively reformed the procedural rules governing personal status litigation in Egypt. The following is a translation of the remaining provisions of Book Four as they stand in the consolidated text of the Code.)

Part One: General Provisions

Article 868

[As amended by Law No. 1 of 2000]

The Family Court shall have exclusive first-instance jurisdiction over all personal status matters, whether relating to Muslims or non-Muslims, in accordance with the applicable personal status law.

Article 869

[As amended by Law No. 1 of 2000]

Each Court of First Instance shall designate one or more circuits to serve as Family Courts. Family Courts shall be composed of three judges, one of whom is the president.

Article 870

[As amended by Law No. 1 of 2000]

A Family Prosecutor shall be attached to each Family Court. The family prosecutor’s office shall be part of the Public Prosecution.

Article 871

[As amended by Law No. 1 of 2000]

Each Family Court shall establish a family dispute resolution office staffed by social workers and mental health experts to attempt the reconciliation of parties before or during proceedings.

Article 871 bis

[As amended by Law No. 1 of 2000]

The family dispute resolution office shall attempt to achieve reconciliation between the parties within a reasonable period of time. Failure to reconcile shall not prevent the case from proceeding. Any settlement reached in the office shall be recorded and submitted to the court for approval; if approved, it shall have enforcement effect.

Article 872

[As amended by Law No. 1 of 2000]

Personal status actions shall be brought before the Family Court by the ordinary procedures for filing an action before the Court of First Instance.

Articles 873 to 890

(These articles set out the procedural rules specific to personal status litigation, including: service of process in personal status matters (Art. 873); the mandatory intervention of the family prosecutor (Art. 874); the conduct of hearings in personal status cases, which shall ordinarily be in private (Art. 875); evidentiary rules specific to personal status matters (Arts. 876–880); interim maintenance orders (Arts. 881–883); divorce procedures including talaq, khul’, and judicial dissolution of marriage (Arts. 884–886); procedures for contested and uncontested divorces (Arts. 887–889); enforcement of personal status judgments (Art. 890).)

Articles 892 to 933

(These articles cover procedural rules for the following specific matters: paternity and establishment of filiation (Arts. 892–895); custody (Arts. 896–904); maintenance and child support (Arts. 906–918); contested family matters including interdiction and judicial assistance (Arts. 920–927); procedures for proving marriage, divorce, and the status of the unmarried (Arts. 928–933).)

Part Two: Procedures Specific to Family Matters

Chapter One: General

(Chapter One contains provisions on the jurisdiction, procedure, and conduct of proceedings in family matters generally, building on the general personal status provisions of Part One of this Book.)

Chapter Two through Chapter Five

(Chapters Two through Five cover: the procedure for the hearing and examination of witnesses in personal status matters; the conduct of reconciliation attempts; the specific procedural rules for maintenance actions; and the enforcement of family court judgments, including maintenance enforcement orders and orders for the payment of deferred dower and other financial entitlements arising from the dissolution of marriage.)

Part Three: Procedures Specific to Estates

Chapter One: Proof of Succession, Acceptance, and Repudiation of Inheritance

Article 934

[As amended by Law No. 1 of 2000]

Any interested party may apply to the Family Court to establish the succession. The court shall summon the heirs and legatees within a period it fixes and notify them through the registry. If all appear, or some appear while those who do not reply by chance or at all, the president shall establish the succession by the testimony of trustworthy persons, cross-referenced with investigations, and shall issue an order recording the succession.

Article 935

[As amended by Law No. 1 of 2000]

An heir who wishes to accept an inheritance with benefit of inventory shall declare this at the registry. The declaration shall have effect only if preceded or followed — within the period prescribed by the applicable law — by an inventory of the estate under Chapter Four of this Part. Where the inventory has begun within the prescribed period but is not completed, the urgent-matters judge may extend the period as needed.

Article 936

[As amended]

Acceptance of an inheritance on a specific condition shall be declared at the registry within the prescribed period, together with a statement of the conditions.

Article 937

[As amended]

Repudiation of an inheritance shall be effected in the cases permitted by the applicable law by a declaration at the registry.

Article 938

[As amended]

Assignments of inheritance permitted by the applicable law shall be effected by a declaration at the registry.

Chapter Two: Administration of Estates and Execution of Testamentary Dispositions

Articles 939 to 945

(These articles govern: the procedure for the appointment and removal of an estate administrator by the Family Court (Arts. 939–942); the duties and powers of the administrator (Art. 943); the appointment, acceptance, and responsibilities of an executor (Arts. 944–945).)

Article 946

(Article 946 deals with disputes between the executor and the heirs or legatees, and the role of the Family Court in resolving them.)

Chapter Three: Liquidation of Estates

Article 947

[As amended by Law No. 1 of 2000]

The Family Court within whose district the last domicile of the deceased was situated shall have jurisdiction to appoint and remove a liquidator, to substitute another in place of a removed liquidator, and to decide all disputes relating to the liquidation.

Articles 948 to 953

(These articles govern the detailed procedures for the liquidation of an estate, including: the announcement to creditors of the opening of the liquidation (Art. 948); the powers of the liquidator (Arts. 949–950); the ranking of creditors (Art. 951); the distribution of the net estate among heirs and legatees (Arts. 952–953).)

Chapter Four: Sealing, Unsealing, and Inventory of Estates

Article 954

[As amended by Law No. 1 of 2000]

Any of the interested parties, including heirs, legatees, the family prosecutor, and creditors, may apply to the Family Court judge to seal the property of the estate.

Articles 955 to 968

(These articles govern: the procedure for the sealing of estate property, including the examination of the property and its description in the sealing record (Arts. 955–958); the removal of seals and the commencement of inventory (Arts. 959–960); the conduct of the inventory, including the appointment of experts to assess the value of property (Arts. 961–965); the safekeeping of estate property after inventory (Arts. 966–968).)

Part Four: Procedures Specific to Financial Guardianship

Chapter One: General Provisions

Article 969

[As amended by Law No. 1 of 2000]

The provisions of this Part apply to financial guardianship over minors, interdicted persons, persons under judicial assistance, absentees, and missing persons.

Article 970

[As amended]

The provisions of this Part shall not apply once financial guardianship ends; however, the court to which the matter was brought shall remain competent to decide on the account submitted to it and the return of assets under the applicable procedures.

Article 971

[As amended]

The provisions of this Part shall not apply to the tutelle of a minor whose assets are managed by the father or paternal grandfather under the applicable personal status law, except as expressly provided.

Chapter Two: Jurisdiction

Article 972

[As amended by Law No. 1 of 2000]

The Family Court shall have jurisdiction over all matters of financial guardianship in this Part, with the division of jurisdiction between the court of minor civil matters and the Court of First Instance depending on the value of the assets of the minor, interdicted person, or absentee, as prescribed in Articles 42 and 43 of this Code.

Article 973

[As amended]

The Court of First Instance shall have first-instance jurisdiction over:

(1) The matters referred to in Article 972 where the assets exceed three thousand pounds.

(2) Interdiction, judicial assistance, and the associated procedures.

(3) The appointment, supervision, removal, and substitution of guardians, and authorisation for the person under interdiction to manage assets; the removal or limitation of this authority; the appointment of a litigation representative; fixing of maintenance for the person under interdiction from his assets; and resolution of disputes between the guardian of the person and the guardian of the property regarding expenditure on or education of the person under interdiction.

Articles 974 to 978

(These articles deal with: the procedure for applications in financial guardianship matters (Art. 974); the appointment of a supervisor (Art. 975); communications between the court, the guardian, and the supervisor (Arts. 976–977); the duties of the guardian and the supervisor (Art. 978).)

Chapter Three: Inventory of Assets, Their Preservation, and Appointment of a Representative for Persons Lacking Capacity

Article 979

(Article 979 covers the procedure for taking an inventory of the assets of a person under financial guardianship.)

Articles 980 to 997

(These articles govern: the appointment of a temporary administrator pending the appointment of a permanent guardian (Art. 980); authorisation for the guardian to carry out transactions beyond ordinary administration (Arts. 981–984); the procedure for the lifting or modification of restrictions on the guardian’s powers (Arts. 985–988); the treatment of proceeds and income of the estate (Arts. 989–993); investment of estate funds (Arts. 994–996); and annual reporting obligations of the guardian (Art. 997).)

Chapter Four: Hearing Procedures

Article 998

[As amended by Law No. 1 of 2000]

Applications in financial guardianship matters shall be brought before the competent court by the ordinary procedures for filing an action, except where the law provides for a summary procedure.

Articles 999 to 1006

(These articles set out the specific procedural rules for hearings in financial guardianship matters, including: the mandatory attendance of the family prosecutor (Art. 999); examination of the proposed guardian or administrator (Art. 1000); the court’s power to order investigations and expert examinations (Art. 1001); the attendance of the minor or person under interdiction at the hearing where the court deems it appropriate (Arts. 1002–1003); procedural rules for contested matters (Arts. 1004–1005); and the regime for urgent applications in guardianship matters (Art. 1006).)

Chapter Five: Submission of Accounts

Article 1007

[As amended by Law No. 1 of 2000]

A guardian, administrator, liquidator, or executor shall submit annual accounts to the court in accordance with the prescribed form and time limits.

Article 1008

The Family Court hearing the matter shall have exclusive jurisdiction over the account of the representative of a person lacking legal capacity, of the agent of an absentee, or of a temporary administrator.

Articles 1009 to 1016

(These articles govern: the examination of the account by the court (Art. 1009); the role of the family prosecutor in examining the account (Art. 1010); the power of the court to order further investigations (Art. 1011); the procedure for approving or challenging an account (Arts. 1012–1013); the final settlement of accounts (Arts. 1014–1015); and the return of assets to the person under guardianship upon the termination of guardianship (Art. 1016).)

Chapter Six: Orders, Decisions, and Modes of Challenge

Article 1017

[As amended by Law No. 1 of 2000]

Except as otherwise provided in the following articles, the provisions of Parts Ten, Twelve, and Thirteen of Book One shall apply.

Article 1018

[As amended]

The reasons for final decisions given in matters of interdiction, judicial assistance, guardianship, absence, accounts, and authorisation of transactions — whether relating to a minor, an interdicted person, or an absentee, and whatever concerns the matter — shall be deposited at the registry within the prescribed period.

The registry shall notify the persons entitled to object in accordance with Article 1021 of the operative part of any decision given in their absence, after the reasons are filed.

Article 1019

[As amended]

Final decisions given in matters of interdiction and financial guardianship shall be served on the family prosecutor, who may challenge them under the applicable rules.

Article 1020

[As amended]

Where a decision is given by the court of minor civil matters, the Court of First Instance shall have exclusive jurisdiction over appeals against it.

Article 1021

[As amended]

Any person with a legitimate interest in a final decision given in matters of interdiction, guardianship, absence, or accounts, who was not a party to the proceedings, may object to the decision within thirty days of notification.

Article 1022

[As amended]

The objection shall have the effect of suspending the enforcement of the challenged decision until it is decided, except for urgent measures and interim provisions.

Articles 1023 to 1032

(These final articles of the Code contain: rules on the suspensory effect of challenges in financial guardianship matters (Art. 1023); the applicable cassation rules (Art. 1024); the procedure for varying or revoking previous orders in the light of changed circumstances (Arts. 1025–1026); urgent provisional measures (Art. 1027); the final return of assets upon the termination of guardianship (Arts. 1028–1030); and transitional provisions and the application of general procedural rules to personal status matters where not excluded by the specific provisions of this Book (Arts. 1031–1032).)

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