Statement Of Claim In Saudi Arabia

Statement of Claim in Saudi Arabia: Its Required Contents, Filing and Registration

A case before the Saudi courts begins with a written statement of claim, and what that document must contain, how it is registered, and what follows when it falls short are matters the law itself settles. The general rules are found in the Law of Civil Procedure , issued by Royal Decree No. (M/1) dated 22/1/1435H and in force according to the Bureau of Experts platform. Claims before the Commercial Courts are also subject to the Commercial Courts Law, issued by Royal Decree No. (M/93) dated 15/8/1441H, which is likewise in force, and to its Implementing Regulations issued on 26 Shawwal 1441H and published on the Ministry of Justice legal portal. The Law of Civil Procedure is supplemented by its Implementing Regulations, issued by Minister of Justice Decision No. (39933) dated 19/5/1435H and last updated by Decision No. (512) dated 5/1/1445H, and the financial side of filing is governed by the Judicial Costs Law, issued by Royal Decree No. (M/16) dated 30/1/1443H. All of these texts are in force according to the official platforms. (The Arabic texts are the authoritative versions; the quotations below are translated from them.)

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The statement of claim under the Law of Civil Procedure

The particulars of the parties

Article 41 of the Law of Civil Procedure opens with the rule that “a claim shall be filed by the plaintiff by means of a statement, signed by him or by his representative, deposited with the court as an original and copies equal in number to the defendants.” The same Article then lists the particulars the statement “must include”. The first concerns the plaintiff and requires his “full name, identity number, profession or occupation, place of residence and place of work”, together with the same particulars for the person who represents him. The second concerns the defendant and is framed differently, since it requires his full name and “such information as is available about his profession or occupation, place of residence and place of work”, and where he has no known place of residence, “his last place of residence”. The Article then requires the date on which the statement is submitted, the court before which the claim is brought, a chosen place of residence for the plaintiff in the town where the court sits if he does not reside there, and finally “the subject of the claim, what the plaintiff requests, and its grounds.”

The difference in wording between the plaintiff’s particulars and the defendant’s is deliberate. The plaintiff must state his own particulars in full, while for the defendant the law requires the full name and only what information is available about the rest, which means that an incomplete knowledge of the defendant’s work or residence does not in itself prevent the filing, provided the plaintiff gives his full name and, where the current residence is unknown, the last one. Where a government body is a party, Article 41 provides that “it is sufficient to state the name and the seat” in place of the particulars required for individuals, and it allows the Supreme Judicial Council to add “such other means and particulars as are necessary” when required. The Article closes with a rule that shapes the drafting of the requests themselves: “several requests that are not connected shall not be combined in one statement of claim.”

The subject of the claim, the requests and their grounds

The last of the listed particulars is the core of the document. The law speaks of the subject of the claim, the plaintiff’s requests and their grounds, which means the statement must identify precisely what the plaintiff asks the court to order and on what factual and legal basis. Article 41 does not, however, list the attachment of evidence among the particulars of the statement, so it is more accurate to say that the statement must set out the grounds of the claim than to say that the law requires all evidence to be filed with it, a matter on which the Commercial Courts rules discussed below say more.

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What the Implementing Regulations add

The Implementing Regulations of the Law of Civil Procedure add several requirements that apply to every statement. Regulation 41/1 provides that “the statement of claim shall be submitted, after being signed, to the competent court in the name of its president, in accordance with the approved form”, and Regulation 41/3 requires that, in addition to the plaintiff’s particulars in paragraph (a) of Article 41, the statement include “the national address of the plaintiff, with a certificate of its validity from the Saudi Post Corporation attached, unless his national address is registered with the court.” Regulation 41/4 eases the description of profession or occupation, since a general designation suffices, “such as employee or self-employed”. Regulation 41/5 provides that the statement is deposited “by registering it in the general register of the court”, and Regulation 41/6 provides that the case file is not sent to the circuit “until the statement of claim is complete, the date of the hearing is set, and the notification procedures are complete.”

Registration, service and the period for appearance

Registration and delivery for service

Once the statement is submitted, Article 42 of the Law of Civil Procedure provides that “the competent clerk shall record the claim in the designated register on the day the statement is submitted, after recording, in the presence of the plaintiff or his representative, the date of the hearing set for it on the original statement and its copies.” The clerk must then, “no later than the following day”, deliver the original and the copies to the process server or to the plaintiff, as the case may be, for service and for the return of the original to the court administration. Article 43 requires the process server or the plaintiff to deliver a copy of the statement to the defendant “within fifteen days at most” of receiving it, unless a hearing has been set within that period, in which case delivery must take place before the hearing, always subject to the period for appearance. For commercial claims, Regulation 42/2, added by Minister of Justice Decision No. (1968) dated 9/6/1439H, requires the court administration, on registering a commercial statement of claim, to set a hearing “within no more than twenty days from the date of registration”, the same period that Article 79(2) of the Implementing Regulations of the Commercial Courts Law adopts for the preparatory hearing.

The period for appearance

That period is set by Article 44 of the same Law, under which the period for appearance before the General Court is “eight days at least from the date of service of the statement of claim”, while before the Labour, Commercial and Personal Status Courts it is “four days at least from the date of service of the statement of claim”. The same Article applies the four-day period to labour, commercial and personal status cases heard by the General Court in a governorate or centre, and it allows the period to be reduced to twenty-four hours in claims arising from traffic accidents or in cases of necessity, on condition that service is made on the opponent personally, that he is able to reach the court on the set date, and that the reduction is authorised by the court before which the claim is brought.

Filing before the Commercial Courts

Choosing the competent court

Before a statement is drafted for the Commercial Court, the claim must fall within that court’s jurisdiction, and Article 16 of the Commercial Courts Law defines it. Paragraph (1) gives the court “disputes arising between merchants by reason of their original or ancillary commercial activities”, and paragraph (2) gives it “claims brought against a merchant in disputes over commercial contracts, where the value of the principal claim exceeds one hundred thousand riyals”, adding that the Council may raise that value when required. The Implementing Regulations now state the threshold in Article 31, under which the Commercial Courts have jurisdiction over such claims “where the value of the principal claim exceeds five hundred thousand riyals”, and Article 6 of the Regulations specifies that the value relied on is “the value of the claims stated in the statement of claim”, excluding claims for litigation costs and attorneys’ fees. The way the requests are valued in the statement therefore bears directly on which court will hear the case. Where the defendant objects that the court lacks subject-matter jurisdiction, Article 18 of the Commercial Courts Law provides that the court may rule on that objection separately “within a period not exceeding twenty days from the date of the objection.”

The prior written notice

The Commercial Courts Law adds a step that has no equivalent in the general rules. Article 19(1) provides that “in the claims specified by the Regulations, the plaintiff must notify the defendant in writing to perform the right claimed at least fifteen days before bringing the claim.” Article 69 of the Implementing Regulations extends this requirement to all claims within the court’s jurisdiction, with five exceptions: claims connected with the penalties provided for in the commercial laws, claims to which a government body is a party, claims whose filing procedure is set by special provisions, small claims, and urgent requests. Article 70 specifies that the notice “must include the particulars of the parties, the subject of the dispute, the requests, and the document on which the claim is based”, and Article 71(1) provides that the notice is accomplished when the plaintiff sends those particulars “to any of the defendant’s addresses by any means”. Article 71(2) treats as equivalent to the notice the submission of proof that the parties resorted to amicable settlement, conciliation or mediation before registration, on condition that the fifteen-day period in Article 19(1) of the Law has elapsed.

The link between this step and the statement of claim is direct. Article 72 of the Regulations provides that “proof of the notice must accompany the statement of claim”, and that where it is not attached “the provisions of Article 21 of the Law shall apply”, which are the provisions on refusal of registration discussed below. Article 76 of the Regulations also requires the statement itself to state “the date of the notice in claims in which notice is required.”

Additional particulars of the statement

Article 20(1) of the Commercial Courts Law provides that “the claim shall be filed by a statement deposited with the court”, and leaves it to the Regulations to specify “the claims that must be filed by a lawyer”. Article 20(2) then requires the statement to include “the particulars of the parties and their representatives, their capacities and addresses, and the particulars and documents specified by the Regulations”, together with “the enumeration of the requests and the identification of all the grounds of the claim”, and Article 20(3) repeats the rule that unconnected requests may not be combined in one statement.

Article 76 of the Implementing Regulations adds to these particulars, “in addition to the particulars provided for in the Law and in the Law of Civil Procedure”, the full name of the natural person for both plaintiff and defendant, the identity number of a natural person, “the commercial registration number of a legal person, and the investment licence of a foreign investor, as the case may be”, the mobile number of the plaintiff, his attorney and the representative of a legal person, the date of the notice where notice is required, the available information about a party’s activity if he is a merchant, the lawyer’s licence number where the claim must be filed by a lawyer, and the particulars of related claims, if any. Article 77(1) requires the statement to explain “the connection between the requests where there are several”, and Article 77(2) sets the consequence of failing to do so, since the court “shall rule that the claim is inadmissible where it includes unconnected requests, unless the plaintiff limits his claim to one of them.”

Filing by a lawyer

On representation, Article 51 of the Regulations provides that “all claims within the jurisdiction of the court and all appeal requests must be filed by a lawyer”, and excludes from that rule the claims in paragraphs (2), (8) and (9) of Article 16 of the Law, the small claims in Article 78(1) of the Law, and appeals against judgments, decisions and orders issued in those claims. The statement of claim before the Commercial Court is therefore, as a rule, a lawyer’s document, and the exclusions are defined by the paragraph of Article 16 under which the claim falls.

Supporting documents

What the texts require to accompany the statement

The texts reviewed do not set out a single list of documents that must accompany every statement of claim. What they do require is specific. Before the Commercial Courts, the prior notice must include “the document on which the claim is based” under Article 70 of the Regulations, proof of the notice must accompany the statement under Article 72, and the statement must carry the commercial registration number, the foreign investor’s investment licence and the lawyer’s licence number where applicable under Article 76. Beyond these, the obligation in Article 20(2) of the Law to identify “all the grounds of the claim” from the outset means that a plaintiff who relies on a contract, invoices or correspondence must state that reliance in the statement itself, since the request and its basis are what the court and the defendant will read first. The same Law requires the defendant, in Article 22(2) and except in urgent requests, to file “a memorandum of his defence containing his answer to the claim and all his defences, and specifying his requests and all his grounds” at least one day before the hearing set for the claim, so the procedure before the Commercial Courts is built on each party disclosing its full position early rather than in stages.

Filing through Najiz

The legal basis for electronic filing

Article 72 of the Law of Civil Procedure provides that “the particulars of statements of claim, notifications, records of claims, ex parte applications and the like may be recorded electronically, and shall have the ruling of written documents, in accordance with the Electronic Transactions Law.” A statement of claim prepared and submitted electronically therefore carries the same legal effect as one written on paper, even though Article 41 still speaks of a statement deposited with the court as an original and copies. For the Commercial Courts, the Implementing Regulations go further and devote a chapter to electronic litigation. Article 23 provides that “electronic litigation procedures shall be conducted through the electronic systems approved by the Ministry”, which in practice means the Ministry of Justice platform Najiz. Article 28 provides that the signature required by the Law and the Regulations may be replaced “by the electronic verification means approved by the Ministry”, which answers the signature requirement for a statement filed electronically, and Article 25 provides that “a party’s denial of what his opponent submitted shall not be accepted merely because it was submitted electronically.” Article 78 adds that the competent administration verifies the requirements for registering the case and any requirements set by the commercial laws, and that “the attachments may be verified electronically by linking with the competent authorities.”

The filing steps on Najiz

The steps of electronic filing are not set by any law or regulation. They are set out in the Ministry of Justice description of the “Statement of Claim” service published on the National Unified Platform (my.gov.sa), last updated on 20 September 2026, which describes the service as allowing the user to file a claim before the general, criminal, civil, commercial, personal status and labour courts. According to that description, the user logs in to the Najiz portal with a National Single Sign-On (Nafath) account, opens the judiciary package among the electronic services, enters the “Statement of Claim” service and starts a new request, enters the classification of the claim and reviews its requirements, enters the particulars of the claim and of its parties, attaches the required documents, and submits the request. Because these steps are operational and may be changed by the Ministry, they should be checked on the platform at the time of filing, while the content of what is entered at each step remains governed by the texts discussed in this article.

What digitisation has changed and what it has not

Electronic filing has changed the medium of the procedure but not its legal substance. The particulars required by Article 41 of the Law of Civil Procedure and its Implementing Regulations, by Article 20 of the Commercial Courts Law and Articles 76 and 77 of its Regulations, the prior notice, and the rules on completion in Article 21 remain the texts against which every filing is checked, and the classification step on Najiz is where the choice of court under Article 16 of the Commercial Courts Law and Article 31 of its Regulations is made in practice. What has changed is that the particulars are recorded electronically with the effect of writing under Article 72 of the Law of Civil Procedure, that before the Commercial Courts the signature may be replaced by the Ministry’s approved electronic verification under Article 28 of their Regulations, and that attachments may be verified by electronic linking under Article 78. Some texts still use the language of paper, since Article 41 speaks of an original and copies equal in number to the defendants and Regulation 41/3 of a Saudi Post certificate, and the official platforms show no amendment to them; the electronic procedure rests instead on Article 72 of the Law and on the Commercial Courts Regulations.

Judicial costs

Scope and amount

Filing a claim now carries a financial dimension that did not exist when the Law of Civil Procedure was issued. Article 2 of the Judicial Costs Law applies its provisions “to all claims and requests submitted to the courts”, except public criminal and disciplinary claims and their related requests, claims and requests within the jurisdiction of the Personal Status Courts and those relating to the division of estates, other than requests for cassation and for reconsideration, claims and requests within the jurisdiction of the Board of Grievances, claims and requests arising from the application of the Bankruptcy Law, and ex parte applications and their related requests. Article 3 provides that judicial costs are imposed on the claim “in an amount not exceeding (5%) of the value of the claim, with a maximum of one million riyals”, and leaves “the criteria for assessing the judicial costs” and the rules governing them to the Implementing Regulations. The National Unified Platform lists the electronic “Statement of Claim” service itself as free, which concerns the e-service and not the judicial costs governed by this Law.

When the costs are determined and who bears them

Under Article 11 of the Judicial Costs Law, the competent administration determines the amount of the costs and notifies it to the plaintiff “upon registration of the claim”, and the plaintiff may object to that determination within fifteen days of notification before the president of the court or the judge he delegates, whose decision is final. Article 12(1) provides that, except for cassation and reconsideration requests, “non-payment of the judicial costs shall not prevent the court from registering the claim or the request and deciding on them.” Article 13(1) places the costs on “the party against whom judgment is given”, in whole or in part, and adds that where the plaintiff is not entitled to part of his requests, he bears the share relating to that part.

Costs and the drafting of the statement

The Judicial Costs Law attaches a direct financial consequence to a poorly drafted statement. Under Article 4, where the court strikes out the claim, rules that it is deemed as though it had not been filed, or rules that it is inadmissible “for not having been properly drafted”, additional judicial costs are imposed if the claim is heard again, “equal to (25%) of the costs of hearing the claim the first time”, and the plaintiff bears them “even if judgment is given in his favour on the merits”. Article 10, on the other hand, provides that no new costs are imposed where the court rules that it lacks jurisdiction and the claim is then brought before the competent court. Precision in drafting the requests and grounds is therefore not only a procedural matter but also one of cost.

When the statement is incomplete

Refusal of registration and the fifteen-day period

Article 21 of the Commercial Courts Law sets out what happens when a statement does not meet the requirements of Article 20. Under Article 21(1), the competent administration registers the statement “if it fulfils what is required under Article 20”. Under Article 21(2), where the administration decides not to register the claim for incompleteness, “the applicant must complete what is missing within fifteen days of being notified”, and if the claim is registered after completion “it shall be deemed registered from the date the registration request was submitted”, whereas if he does not complete what was requested within that period “the request shall be deemed as though it had not been made”. Article 21(3) allows the applicant to file a grievance against the refusal with the president of the court within fifteen days of being notified, and provides that the decision of the president, or of the judge he delegates, “shall be final”.

The consequence of incompleteness is therefore neither immediate rejection nor automatic acceptance. The plaintiff is given a fixed period to remedy the defect while keeping the original filing date, and he loses that date only if the period passes without the missing items being supplied.

Registration of a complete statement

Once the statement is complete, Article 79(1) of the Regulations requires the administration to register it “on the day it is submitted” and refer it to the competent circuit immediately, and Article 79(2) sets the preparatory hearing within “no more than twenty days from the date of its registration”, with the parties notified no later than the day after registration.

Unconnected requests

Both laws prohibit combining unconnected requests in one statement, in Article 41 of the Law of Civil Procedure and in Article 20(3) of the Commercial Courts Law. Before the Commercial Courts, this rule operates differently from the registration requirements, because it is applied by the court rather than by the registration office. Article 77(1) of the Regulations requires the statement to explain the connection between the requests where there are several, and the consequence under Article 77(2) is a ruling that the claim is inadmissible unless the plaintiff limits the claim to one request. Article 77(2) opens with the words “without prejudice to Article 21 of the Law”, so the registration rules in Article 21 continue to apply alongside it.

Conclusion

The statement of claim is regulated at two levels. The Law of Civil Procedure sets the general content in Article 41, namely the parties’ particulars, the date, the court, and the subject of the claim with its requests and grounds, its Implementing Regulations add the approved form, the national address and the conditions for sending the file to the circuit, and the Law governs registration, service and the period for appearance in Articles 42 to 44. Before the Commercial Courts, Article 16 of the Commercial Courts Law and Articles 6 and 31 of its Regulations decide whether the court has jurisdiction, Article 19 and Articles 69 to 72 of the Regulations require a prior written notice whose proof must accompany the statement, Article 20 and Articles 76 and 77 of the Regulations add particulars and require all grounds and the connection between requests to be stated, and Article 51 of the Regulations makes filing by a lawyer the rule. Article 21 of the Law then provides a fifteen-day period to complete a deficient statement while preserving its filing date. Electronic filing through Najiz rests on Article 72 of the Law of Civil Procedure and on the Commercial Courts Regulations, and it changes how the statement is submitted without changing what it must contain, while the Judicial Costs Law adds a cost to the claim, determined at registration and borne by the losing party, and an additional cost where a claim must be heard again after being found improperly drafted. A statement drafted against these texts, with its requests valued and connected, its grounds identified, and its notice proved, is one that the registration office can accept on the day it is submitted and that the court can examine from its first hearing.

Frequently asked questions

Can a statement of claim be filed electronically in Saudi Arabia?

Yes. Before the Commercial Courts, Article 23 of the Implementing Regulations of the Commercial Courts Law provides that electronic litigation procedures are conducted “through the electronic systems approved by the Ministry”, which in practice means the Najiz platform, and Article 28 accepts the electronic verification means approved by the Ministry in place of a signature. Before the other courts, Article 72 of the Law of Civil Procedure allows the particulars of statements of claim to be recorded electronically and gives them the ruling of written documents in accordance with the Electronic Transactions Law. In practice, the Ministry of Justice service description on the National Unified Platform describes filing through the Najiz portal after logging in with a Nafath account, entering the classification of the claim, the particulars of the claim and its parties, and the required documents.

What must a statement of claim include at a minimum?

Under Article 41 of the Law of Civil Procedure, it must include the particulars of the plaintiff and his representative, the full name of the defendant and the available information about him, the date of submission, the court, a chosen place of residence for a plaintiff who does not reside where the court sits, and the subject of the claim, the plaintiff’s requests and their grounds, and Regulation 41/3 of its Implementing Regulations adds the plaintiff’s national address. Before the Commercial Courts, Article 20(2) of the Commercial Courts Law adds the enumeration of the requests and “the identification of all the grounds of the claim”, and Article 76 of the Regulations adds further particulars such as the commercial registration number and the date of the prior notice.

Must the evidence be attached to the statement of claim?

Article 41 of the Law of Civil Procedure does not list the attachment of evidence among the particulars of the statement, and the texts reviewed do not set a single list of documents for every claim. Before the Commercial Courts, however, proof of the prior notice must accompany the statement under Article 72 of the Regulations, the notice itself must include the document on which the claim is based under Article 70, and the statement must identify all its grounds under Article 20(2) of the Law.

Is a prior notice to the defendant required before filing?

Before the Commercial Courts, yes, as a rule. Article 19(1) of the Commercial Courts Law requires a written notice at least fifteen days before the claim is brought in the claims specified by the Regulations, and Article 69 of the Regulations applies it to all claims within the court’s jurisdiction except penalty claims, claims to which a government body is a party, claims governed by special filing procedures, small claims and urgent requests.

Must the statement of claim be filed by a lawyer?

Before the Commercial Courts, Article 51 of the Regulations makes filing by a lawyer the rule for all claims and appeals, except the claims in paragraphs (2), (8) and (9) of Article 16 of the Commercial Courts Law, small claims, and appeals in those claims. The Law of Civil Procedure allows the statement to be signed by the plaintiff or by his representative.

What if the defendant’s current address is unknown?

Article 41(b) of the Law of Civil Procedure requires the defendant’s full name and only the information available about his profession, residence and place of work, and provides that where he has no known place of residence, his last place of residence is stated.

What happens if the court administration finds the statement incomplete?

Before the Commercial Courts, Article 21(2) of the Commercial Courts Law gives the applicant fifteen days from notification to complete what is missing. If he does so, the claim is deemed registered from the date the registration request was submitted, and if he does not, the request is deemed as though it had not been made. Under Article 21(3), he may file a grievance with the president of the court within fifteen days, and the decision on it is final.

Are there costs for filing a statement of claim?

Yes, for most claims. Article 3 of the Judicial Costs Law imposes costs not exceeding 5% of the value of the claim, up to one million riyals, subject to the exceptions in Article 2. Under Article 11 the amount is notified to the plaintiff upon registration, under Article 12(1) non-payment does not prevent registration and decision except in cassation and reconsideration requests, and under Article 13(1) the costs are borne by the party against whom judgment is given.

What does it cost to refile a claim that was rejected for improper drafting?

Under Article 4 of the Judicial Costs Law, where the court rules that a claim is inadmissible for not having been properly drafted, or strikes it out or deems it as though it had not been filed, hearing it again carries additional judicial costs equal to 25% of the costs of hearing it the first time, which the plaintiff bears even if judgment is later given in his favour on the merits.