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 “Briefing on Media Law,” from the Associated Press
Stylebook
 “Introduction,” from Price and Al Tamimi, United Arab
Emirates Court of Cassation Judgments 1998-2003
 Walters and Quinn, Bridging the Gulf
UAE Federal Law No. 15 (1980 law on press and
publishing)
Dubai Media City‟s Codes of Guidance, 2003
“The Proposed New Media Activities Law: Comments
and Suggestions” (Al Khaleej, Jan. 18, 2009)
“Legal and Political Forces and Advertising,” from
Principles of Advertising, a Global Perspective
Excerpts from Dennis and Merrill, Media Debates
Excerpts from Boorstin, The Image

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Al Tamimi, Practical Guide to Litigation and
Arbitration in the United Arab Emirates
Weeramantry, Islamic Jurisprudence
Franklin, The First Amendment and the Fourth
Estate
Moore, Maye and Collins, Advertising and PR
Law (2nd ed.)
Nolfi, Legal Terminology Explained
Kamali, Freedom of Expression in Islam
Friedman, American Law: An introduction
Feinman, Law 101
Results will be placed outside my office door
If you wish to contest an answer
• Please do it in writing; attach documentation to
your memo; place it in my in-box.
• I will accept no verbal or e-mailed queries about
test questions.
• Also, include your complete test.
Expect me to re-examine and possibly re-grade your other
answers as well…

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 The examples of libel law which we will discuss, based on the AP
Stylebook‟s introduction to media law, are largely Western examples, and
may differ (to extremes) in other cultures.
• For a discussion of (often very similar) Sharia concepts, the library has
Mohammad Hashim Kamali‟s Freedom of Expression in Islam
(Cambridge: ITS, 1997)
 See particularly its sections on:
 Slander (Qadhf), 171-175
 Libel (Iftirā)175-177
 Insult (Sabb, Shatm), 177-182

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 Defamation: A false* statement that injures someone's
reputation and exposes him to public contempt, hatred,
ridicule, or condemnation.
Libel: A false* written/printed statement that defames
someone.
• Some laws include broadcasting-related definitions of libel.
Slander: An orally uttered (or broadcasted) false*
statement that defames someone.
Lawsuit (or suit): An action taken in court against you.
* While American definitions state that this has to be false other
cultures/countries may not include that.

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 Trade libel: “written defamations of the
quality of commercial goods and services.”
• Currently a very narrow area of US law, as the
following term has been expanded to cover more
areas.
 ProductDisparagement: Causing “injurious
falsehoods that disparage the quality of a
product or service but do not defame the
company that provides and produces them.”
• Moore, Maye and Collins, 102-103.
 Criteria for product disparagement include:
• The disparaging statement has been made
• The statement has been published to a third party by
the defendant
 So it‟s not a private statement between two people/parties;
a third outside individual or group is involved.
• The statement is about a specific product or service
• The statement is the true cause of the actual harm
suffered by the plaintiff
 (continued on the next slide)
• The plaintiff is entitled to be compensated by money
damages because the statement results in financial
damage of ir likely to do so
• The statement is false
• The defendant acted with actual malice – meaning
that the defendant knew the statement is untrue or
entertained serious doubt that the statement is true.
 “Thus actual malice, not mere negligence, must be shown
in all product disparagement cases…”
 We will learn more about the term actual malice in future
slides.
 Moore, Maye and Collins, 102.
 A court must decide a libel or slander
against a public figure is not only false,
but also done with actual malice (i.e., evil
intentions)
More about actual malice on the next slide.
• The lesson: Private individuals generally have
more rights under defamation laws than do
public ones.
 Note please: In some countries, public officials may claim
more rights than private individuals.

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 A statement made with actual malice is
one made “with knowledge that it was
false or with reckless disregard of
whether it was false or not.”
• Source: Franklin, p. 97.

• More on this appears on the next slides…

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In US courts, “It is important to note that
the term actual malice in the law of
defamation does not refer to hatred or
spite directed toward the plaintiff. Actual
malice is malice toward the truth of the
statement.”

Moore, Maye, Collins, p. 97

“The defendants in suits brought by public
persons need only show that they neither knew that
what they were publishing was false, nor seriously
doubted what they were publishing was not true to
defeat a claim of actual malice. A defendant who
can legitimately say, „I don‟t know if what I
published was true and I don‟t care” or „It could
have been true – I didn‟t bother to check‟ has not
acted with actual malice. Actual malice is hard to
prove; as a result, most public officials and figures
do not bring libel suits and those who do generlly
don‟t win.”
Moore, Maye, Collins, p. 97-98.
 In the US, you cannot defame the dead.
• However, someone whose own reputation is
damaged because YOU defamed the dead
person may be able to sue you.

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“An essential element of an action for libel [and
defamation] is that the complainant be
identifiable to a third party.”

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• Class action: “an action on behalf of a large
group of plaintiffs by one or more representative
members of the group.”
To have a class action, the group must be …
 numerous …
 Involve common questions of law or fact,
 the claims or defenses must be similar,
 representative member or members must fairly represent
the group.
Paraphrased from Nolfi, Legal Terminology Explained

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 It‟s not in the spectacular stories, which usually get
careful checking (and re-checking) by several editors.
It‟s in the routine police/fire/court notices, or
announcements in which some factual mistake (names,
dates, addresses, etc.) occurs.

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 Hoax announcements
Fake birth/death/wedding/engagement
reports
Wrong information
• Such as accusations or insinuations which
Can be proved to be false
cannot be proved true
Wrong names/pictures/data in routine
announcements

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 Many newspaper/online stories about
libel cases don‟t actually re-print the
questionable statement.
• Why? Because this itself might constitute libel.
• Thus, you often have to look into court
documents themselves to find out exactly what
was written.

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 Reporting (even accurately) somebody else‟s
slanderous comments may also provide grounds for a
libel suit if the slanderous comments are indeed false.

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 Person A calls Person B a “drunken criminal”
You report it.
Person B might sue YOU (not Person A)
because you‟re the one who made the slander
public (and into libel).
• Person B would probably argue that s/he is a)
not a drunk and b) not a criminal, citing a
spotless police record, testimony of character
witnesses, medical reports, etc.

• So you accurately reported it, but the statement

you accurately reported is itself not accurate
(and also falsely defamatory)
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 “In the eyes of the [US] law, „tale bearers are as
bad as tale makers.‟ … [T]hose who pass along a
defamatory statement are as answerable in a
court of law as those who originated it.”
 The repetition of offending statements “may be
regarded as a separate publication for which
damages may be recovered. Every person or
organization with a hand in the publication of the
statements could in theory, be a defendant.”
 Moore, Maye, Collins, p. 101.
 The following slides identify three types
of “defendant categories” involving
defamation (and product disparagement
and trade libel, discussed earlier in our
course)
• Primary publisher
• Republisher
• Secondary publisher
 Media professionals “who actually prepare the
harmful messages, clearly will be named as
defendants in a defamation suit, although in actual
practice, the agency or organization for which they
created the message will likely be the primary
defendants in such a suit. … The owner of a
newspaper or television station carrying a
defamatory statement will be considered a primary
publisher and thus held accountable for the message
to the same extent as the original publishers.
Everything that appears in print or on the air…
becomes the responsibility of the publisher.”
 Moore Maye and Collins, 101-102
 “Anyone who repeats or passes along a
defamatory statement would be held
accountable in the same way as a primary
publisher, even if, in repeating the libel, the
speaker makes it clear that the defamatory
message is not believed. Note that this
republication rule arguable is just as
applicable to those who republish the
information on a Facebook page, in a „tweet,‟
on a blog or through another form of social
media.”
 Moore Maye and Collins, 102
 “Those who held circulate the
defamatory materials (e.g., the person
who delivers the newspaper or an
operator who plays the defamatory
videotape or the owner of the bookstore)
may also be held accountable, but only if
they had knowledge, or should have had
knowledge, of the defamatory content.”

 Moore, Maye and Collins, 102

 None of these are infallible, but working
within these categories may limit (in the
West at least) the legal complains one
may bring against you.

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 “The rationale behind the opinion privilege is that only
statements that can be proven true or false are capable
of defamatory meaning and that statements of „opinion‟
cannot, by their nature, be proven true or false.”

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 You may also be able to express views on subjects that
cannot be proved true or false.
• Use figurative language: Somebody looks “like an angel” or
“like a deer caught in the headlights,” or is a “rotten apple” or
the “black sheep of the family.”
• Tone: Are you being serious -- or humorous or silly or sarcastic?
The point is that humorous language “would negate the impression
that the statement is serious.”
Of course, this depends on how the court interprets your tone…

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 Based on the idea that “everyone has a
right to comment on matters of public
interest and concern, provided they do so
fairly and with an honest purpose. Such
comments or criticism are not libelous,
however severe in their terms, unless
they are written maliciously.”

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 Thus you should be able to criticize a
movie, book, CD, celebrity, politician, etc.
• Warning: Some governments prohibit or limit
perceived criticism of government or guiding
ideology.

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 This basically states that your article
about a public proceeding cannot
provide the means of a libel suit.
• So if something is said in a government meeting,
or in a court, or on a major commercial road at
noon through a loudspeaker, you should be able
to report it.
Obviously, your report must be “fair and accurate.”

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 Some American states (and probably
many countries) require that certain
court cases -- divorces, hearings
involving children, etc. – are sealed and
not open to the public.
• If a reporter gets the data and publishes it, they
may be breaking the law – AND open to a libel
suit if it reports any charges in the initial court
case which are found to be untrue.

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 Perjury “is deliberately giving a false,
incomplete or misleading statement
under oath …” in court.

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 This idea states that as long as the story is
neutral (not supporting one side or the other)
of a controversy, any defamatory statements
reported in it are not grounds for a libel suit.
• Doing this would reverse our earlier concerns
regarding the accuracy of a slanderous remark.
 Unfortunately for journalists, the concept of “Neutral
Reportage” as a “privileged” area is only rarely upheld by
U.S. courts (or courts elsewhere in the world.)

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 There are three principles ones used in
the US; they may not protect you
anyplace else, but they‟re good to know.

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 Basically, this says that the statement YOU think
defames you doesn‟t really do so.
• How does the law define defamation? To cite one
example: It would accuse someone of “being a
criminal, an adulterer, insane or infected with a
loathsome disease.”

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 Some courts/states have decided that it is defamatory
to call someone a communist, Nazi, etc., without cause.
A statement may be false, abusive, and unpleasant
without being defamatory.
See also Kamali, Freedom of Expression in Islam, pp. 186-190,
on “Attribution of Disbelief to a Muslim.”

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 “A libel defendant‟s best defense is that the
statement is true.”
One more good reason to stick to facts and (when available)
to stick to documents, especially government reports.
The documents may still have errors, but it can be argued that they
represent credibility because the same government that is presiding over
your trial issued the documents at issue.
As one scholar puts it: “Truth is an absolute defense to
defamation: if what you say is true, it cannot be defamatory.”
 Daniel Steven, “When Truth Is No Defense,” available online at
http://www.publishlawyer.com/carousel4.htm

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 Know this for the test…
• First used by Scottish lawyer Andrew Hamilton
in colonial America in the 1735 trial of
newspaper publisher John Peter Zenger.

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Zenger‟s newspaper, The New York
Weekly Journal, had criticized the state‟s
governor for corruption and inefficiency.
The governor responded by jailing
Zenger and prosecuting him for
“seditious libel.”
• Seditious Libel: Printing something which injures the state or
incites public disorder

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 Hamilton successfully argued that the
press has "a liberty both of exposing and
opposing tyrannical power by speaking
and writing truth."
• A parallel
Narrated by AbuSa'id al-Khudri:
 The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: The best
fighting (jihad) in the path of Allah is (to speak) a word
of justice to an oppressive ruler.
 Sunan of Abu Dawud (Book 37, no. 4330).

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“In order to be „at fault‟ in publishing a
statement, the person suing must prove that the
reporter either
• did something they should not have done
• or that they failed to do something that they
should have done.”

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 SO: “If the reporter did everything a „reasonable
reporter‟ should have done to verify the information in
his or her story before publishing it, for example,
• talked to all sides,
• obtained and read all relevant documents,
• took accurate notes, etc.
the reporter is not legally „at fault.‟"
http://www.splc.org/legalresearch.asp?id=27

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“People suing for libel who are either
public officials or public figures will often
have to prove a higher level of fault than
an ordinary person.”

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Legal definitions vary: They often involve
the words: “injection into public
controversy.”

• The following slides provide several American

examples from different states…

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A public figure is someone who:
• “has thrust himself or herself into the vortex (i.e,
center) of a public issue or controversy or has
taken affirmative steps to attract public
attention.” (NY)
• “has voluntarily and actively sought, in
connection with any matter of public interest, to
influence resolution of the issue involved.”
(Calif.)
Once you become a public figure in California, you
carry that status “to the end of his/her days.”

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• “has assumed a role of prominence in the affairs
of society.” (Texas)
Any libel controversy may require proof that the
defamation is relevant to the injured person‟s
participation in that controversy.

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Examples of private figures:
• A teacher whose participation in public
controversy did not exceed that which she was
required to by school regulations (except that
she responded to media inquiries.)
• A corporation which did business with a party to
a controversy, but was not part of the controversy
itself.

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Walters and Quinn

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According to your instructor‟s interpretation of the data,
UAE media professionals are principally subject to:
UAE Federal Law 15 on Press and Publications
But they are also potentially subject to other laws:
Laws on revealing national secrets, etc.
Specific regulations set down by various ministries (such as regarding
advertising certain products).
Sharia Law
For violating interpretations of specific Islamic law prohibitions.
We need to think of three things:
1) The law itself (how it‟s worded)
2) How the law is interpreted by courts
i.e., how it is actually applied.
3) How it is enforced
And IS it enforced ?
 • This chapter provides an overview of how the
UAE‟s legal system developed and works today.
Be sure to know the terms and definitions we
introduce
Be prepared to identify articles and their contents
from the UAE‟s own Law on Press and Publishing.

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Some of this material comes from
OUTSIDE of our textbook, principally
Essam Al Tamimi, Practical Guide to
Litigation and Arbitration in the United
Arab Emirates (The Hague, 2003: Kluwer
Law International).
On or tests, you are responsible for all
lecture materials as well as readings,
regardless of source.
 The1971 Constitution agreed that the Supreme
Council of Rulers shall be the highest
legislative (i.e. law-making) authority in the
UAE.
The Chief of State is the President.
Technically, the Supreme Council elects/re-elects a
president (from members of the Supreme Council)
every five years.
The Supreme Council is made up of the Rulers of
each Emirate.
“Decisions on substantive matters are taken by
a majority of five, provided that this majority
includes the votes of the Emirates of Abu Dhabi
and Dubai.” (Al Tamimi, citing Art. 49 of the
Constitution)
• This gives Abu Dhabi and Dubai veto power over
any rulings.
Veto: Latin for “I forbid.”
Basically, use of a veto blocks passage of a law.
The Constitution provides for a 40-member
National Assembly
• Members were initially all appointed by the
Emirates; in December 2006 there were
elections for half of the seats.
Two-year, renewable terms.
“The decisions of the National Assembly are advisory and
neither the Cabinet nor the Supreme Council are obliged to
follow them.” (Al Tamimi, p. 3)
 Federal
Laws are made by the Supreme
Council of Rulers.
• Approves laws presented by the Federal
Council of Ministers (or Cabinet) and the
National Assembly.
 “While the making of laws on major issues is
reserved to the Federal Government, local
authorities in the different Emirates are
authorized to issue Decrees regulating local
matters.”
• http://www.zu.ac.ae/library/html/UAEInfo/UAELaw.htm
 Part Vof the UAE Constitution is headed
“Laws Issued by Decrees” and contains
three articles (113, 114 and 115)
concerning this topic.

• This section is based on the UAE Constitution online at http://www.helplinelaw.com/law/uae/constitution/constitution04.php

 “Should necessity arise for urgent
promulgation of Union laws between
sessions of the Supreme Council, the
President of the Union together with the
Council of Ministers may promulgate the
necessary laws in the form of decrees…”
 Hence, Ministry regulations may appear
in the form of decrees rather than laws.
• They “shall have the force of law, provided that
they are not inconsistent with the Constitution.”
• Such decree-laws must be referred to the
Supreme Council within a week at the maximum
for assent or rejection. If they are approved, they
shall have the force of law and the Union
National Assembly shall be notified at its next
meeting.
 Presumably, the decrees mentioned in our text
received approval.
The lowest tier is the Courts of First
Instance – where cases usually originate.
The second tier of the Federal court
system consists of the Courts of Appeal
• Appellate jurisdiction: Where people may take a case decided
already at – and appeal the judges‟ rulings.

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On top is the Federal Supreme Court (Court of
Cassation*)
• based in Abu Dhabi
• comprised of five judges
• Serves as the highest judicial authority
It has both appellate and original jurisdiction
• i.e., it hears appeals of earlier cases decided in
lower courts, but a case can also have its first
hearing at Supreme Court level.
* Cassation basically means the power to annul
(cancel) a previous decision.
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Dubai and Ras Al Khaimah have this three-tiered system but they
operate WITHIN each of those emirates; they are independent of
the federal system.
• (When the UAE developed a federal legal system, the
individual emirates were given the choice of joining it or
maintaining their own systems; Dubai and RAK kept theirs
separate.)
 Dubai kept a separate military, the Dubai Defense Force, until
1996
 Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8382275.stm

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• “Each emirate maintain[s] its own
independent police force. While all
emirate internal security organs
theoretically [are] branches of one
federal organization, in practice they
operate with considerable
independence.”
 Adapted from Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2002, released by the Bureau of Democracy,
Human Rights, and Labor
March 31, 2003 (Bureau of Public Affairs, U.S. Department of State.)
1) Civil cases
• Civil law: Generally non-criminal law, violation
of which is not punishable by imprisonment
 law of property
 commercial law
 administrative law

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2. Criminal cases
A crime is something seen as so harmful to society
that it is punished with imprisonment or worse.
 Capital crime: punishable by death)
 N.B. In the UAE, “A person may be imprisoned if s/he fails to
pay the amount set out in the judgment against him.”
 (Article 324 of the Civil Procedure Law, as cited in El Tamimi,
p. 120)
 So a large fine is potentially tantamount to a jail sentence.
Each emirate also maintains a parallel system of Sharia Courts
(i.e., Islamic law) organized and supervised locally.
• These deal with matters of Muslim personal issues such as
marriage, divorce, custody and inheritance.
• In Abu Dhabi particularly, the Sharia courts may also review
serious criminal cases, labor and other commercial matters –
presumably this is in cases where specific Islamic laws are
concerned..
According to a source outside our textbook, the UAE‟s Sharia courts are “required to answer to the
Federal Supreme Court.” (Presumably, those in RAK and Dubai answer to those emirates‟ Supreme
Courts.)
 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2002, released by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, March 31, 2003 (Bureau of Public Affairs, U.S. Department of State.)

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In the UAE (and unlike the West) there is no separation of religion and
state
UAE Constitution Article 7 declares
• Islam is the official religion
• Islamic Sharia the main source of legislation

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The extension of a Sharia ruling from an
original case to a new case due to a
similar underlying reason.
• Similar to a Western concept called “precedent”
discussed on the next slide.
 Precedent*
• “A preceding similar case, or the law established or applied in
a preceding similar case.”
 Source: Nolfi, Legal Terminology Explained, p. 11
In the West, often this becomes “an authorized declaration of the
law…”
• Stare decisis: Latin for “fixed gaze” – judges are generally
going to follow decisions made by others before them.
If a judge‟s interpretation survives an appeal, it generally becomes a
solid precedent. A later judge feels safe following the previous
judicial interpretation.

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 “A precedent repeatedly followed
becomes well-established law.”
• Therefore, “by generally following precedent,
the law made by judges in deciding actual cases
… made the law common to all of England…”
 In the US, this “common law” concept is often referred
to as “case law.”

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 Common/Case Law: Court decisions
effectively “make” law because of their
interpretative function.
 Civil Law System: Courts do NOT have
the power to make law – a judge is not
bound by previous interpretations.
 Occasionally, English-language
translations of UAE laws refer to
“common law,” but apparently this is
their way of saying “civil law” (as
opposed to Sharia law.
Discretionary Interpretation
• Discretionary interpretation allows a judge to make up his own mind
about how to rule on a case.
In matters covered by specific legislation, the judge is forbidden to
do this.
But in the absence of specific law, courts must adopt the general
principles of Islamic jurisprudence and justice.
In applying general principles, a UAE
civil/criminal court judge is NOT bound
by previous decisions (precedents) of
other courts/judges.
• So in UAE Criminal/Civil Law, a precedent set by
another court/judge is not necessarily binding
or even influential; a judge can interpret his own
way.

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In the UAE, judicial cases are reached by
referring to broad legal ideas/principles,
and not by how others have decided
similar cases.

This reflects the influence of Al Majala

(discussed on the next slide)

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The Majalat Al-Ahkam Al-Adlia: The Civil
Code of the Ottoman State
• Derived mainly from Hanfi Sect, compiled and
promulgated in Istanbul circa 1836 (common
era).
• It was applied in most Arab countries during
Ottoman rule
Afterwards, these newly independent states
continued applying Al Majala until they issued their
own civil codes.

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Al Majala dealt with the principle of precedent by saying that each
case should be judged on its own merits.
But it‟s also important that in the UAE, decisions of the Federal
Supreme Court and other Appeals Courts are not commonly
available in classified form.
• i.e., it‟s tough for a UAE judge to have access to what precedent
another UAE judge has set.

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Increasingly, UAE nationals with degrees
from recognized law/Shari‟a colleges are
being appointed judges.
• A few Arab expatriate judges still serve in the
higher courts.
• US/UK/EU law firms may work as legal
consultants, but may not plead a case in a UAE
courtroom.

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These are set down in the Criminal Procedures Code
• Police must report arrests within 48 hours to the
office of the Attorney General (the senior
prosecuting official for the UAE or Dubai/RAK)
• The Attorney General‟s office has 24 hours to:
Charge with a crime
Release
Order further detention (Remand) pending an
investigation

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 “The Public Prosecutor may order that
detainees be held for 7 days with the discretion
to extend detention for another 14 days.
• Additional detention (up to 30 days) requires a
court order which can be granted “only upon a
showing by the authorities of sufficient evidence
that the defendant committed the offense.”
 Adapted from Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2002,
released by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor,
March 31, 2003 (Bureau of Public Affairs, U.S. Department of
State.)
This right is given under Article 28 of the
Federal Constitution
Usually invoked in civil cases
• Civil defendants may ask for same-day
disposition

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Criminal cases may start quickly but
often take a long time depending on:
• Seriousness of charges
Drug-related cases are reported to the President
The President‟s office may also involve itself in cases
from different emirates, or between a UAE national
and non-UAE citizen.
• Number of witnesses
• Availability of judges
(cont.)

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 “Trials could last a substantial period of
time, depending on the seriousness of
the charges, number of witnesses, and
availability of judges. Rape cases
sometimes took more than 1 year to get
to trial.”
 Adapted from Country Reports on Human Rights Practices -
2002, released by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights,
and Labor
March 31, 2003 (Bureau of Public Affairs, U.S. Department of
State.)
There is no formal “bail” system
• However, a court may release detainees who
deposit money or a passport as security

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No jury trials
• A case is decided by the judge(s)
The number of judges sitting for a case depends on the type
of crime alleged.
 The number is usually three.

88
88
Trials are public, except for cases
involving:
• national security
• Public morality

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If the defendant or prosecutor feel the
verdict was incorrect and could be
reversed upon review, they may appeal
the finding to a higher court.
• The higher court reviews the case and may
receive more and new evidence.
It may change the verdict.

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 Civiljudgment: May be appealed within
30 days
 Criminal judgment: May be appealed
within 15 days.
 Grounds of appeal:
• Factual (i.e., some data was not taken into
consideration, or misinterpreted)
• Legal (i.e., the law was somehow misapplied)
 Tamimi, p. 11-13.
 Materialon the preceding slides will be
used (along with materials drawn from
the required readings themselves) on
Test 1.

 Slides after this one will be handled on

Test 2.