The new Omani Advocacy and Legal Consultancy Law was promulgated two days ago, and it introduces major changes to the regulation of the legal profession in Oman. The new law requires advocates to pass written exams to qualify to appear before the different levels of Omani courts, and permits international law firms to open legal consultancy offices in Oman without a local Omani partner, among many other significant changes. This new law will enter into force after six months.
Decree Monthly Digest is a summary of the most significant updates on Decree in the previous month.
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Intel Update: September 2024
Decree Intel is a database of original Omani legal research material that provides explanatory notes, overviews of government entities, and summaries of Supreme Court cases and MJLA Fatwas.
New Content
Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority: The Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority (الهيئة العامة لتنمية المؤسسات الصغيرة والمتوسطة) is the entity responsible for promoting and supporting the growth of small and medium-sized enterprises as well as craft industries.
Overview of Alternative Dispute Resolution: This document provides an overview of the key legislation relating to alternative dispute resolution in Oman.
Case Summary: Supreme Court (Criminal Circuit): Contestation 210/2017 (Reliability of Translation Used in Trial): The Supreme Court held that the issue of the reliability of a translation accepted by the Court of Appeal in the procedures of the trial is a substantive matter that cannot be contested before the Supreme Court.
Case Summary: Supreme Court (Labour Circuit) Contestation: 210/2017 (Consequences of Delaying Employee Disciplinary Measure): The Supreme Court held that the failure of the employer to impose a disciplinary punishment against an employee after the expiry of the deadlines stipulated by the Labour Law rendered the action taken by the employer against the violating employee illegal.
Earlier this month, the Council of Europe adopted a new legally binding international agreement on AI called the Council of Europe Framework Convention on Artificial Intelligence and Human Rights, Democracy and the Rule of Law that was signed by the EU, the UK, Norway, the US, and others. This convention is the first legally binding multilateral instrument governing artificial intelligence and is intended to create a legal framework for ensuring that all activities within the AI lifecycle respect human rights, democracy, and the rule of law.
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Introducing: Decree Saudi Arabia
We are launching today the free beta version of Decree Saudi Arabia. This version of Decree offers full-text of English-translated Saudi royal decrees, laws, ministerial decisions, and other content published in Umm Al-Qura Newspaper, i.e. the Saudi official gazette, on a weekly basis.
We are still in the early stages of building the English database of Decree Saudi Arabia, and we welcome feedback from our users regarding items from the backlog of Saudi legislation that they would like to see translated on Decree.
Similar to the Omani version of Decree, Decree Saudi Arabia is linked with Qanoon Saudi Arabia, and it is possible to use the English website to locate legislation items even if they are not translated so that the user can view the original document or use Google translate to access the document.
Decree Saudi Arabia also has its own free weekly newsletter that notifies users of the contents of new issues of Umm Al-Qura.
Please note that the login details of Decree.om are NOT linked with the login details of Decree Saudi Arabia. Upon the official launch of the service, both services will be accessible using a unified access system.
Decree Saudi Arabia is available free of charge until the end of the year. It will be available as an add-on to Decree.om customers.
You can stay up to date with Decree Saudi Arabia by following our Saudi LinkedIn account.
Decree Monthly Digest is a summary of the most significant updates on Decree in the previous month.
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Intel Update: August 2024
Decree Intel is a database of original Omani legal research material that provides explanatory notes, overviews of government entities, and summaries of Supreme Court cases and MJLA Fatwas.
New Content
Ministry of Defence: The Ministry of Defence (وزارة الدفاع) is responsible for ensuring security, safety, stability, and peace in the Sultanate.
Ministry of Housing and Urban Planning: The Ministry of Housing and Urban Planning (وزارة الإسكان والتخطيط العمراني) is responsible for proposing public policy for housing and urban planning as well as the policy for allocating government lands.
National Centre for Statistics and Information: The National Centre for Statistics and Information (المركز الوطني للإحصاء والمعلومات) is the official statistics office of the country and the body responsible for conducting the census.
Case Summary: Supreme Court (Commercial Circuit) Contestation 380/2016 (Invalidation of Trade Mark Registration): The Supreme Court confirmed the invalidation of a new trade mark registration due to its similarity to an existing registration. In deciding if the trade marks are similar, the Supreme Court held that one must look at the collective elements of the mark and not individual elements.
The Environment Authority (EA) issued in this week’s Official Gazette Decision 187/2024 Amending Some Provisions of the Regulation Governing Environmental Permits, which amends articles 12 and 21 of the regulation.
Article 12 of the regulation sets out that a financial guarantee must be provided to the authority when applying for an environmental permit for specific projects. As per the amendment, a financial guarantee of 250,000 Rial Omani must now be provided for oil and gas production projects per site.
Article 21 of the regulation sets out certain obligations of the project owner. As per the amendment, project owners are now required to submit an environmental audit study for specific projects. These projects include oil refineries, heavy industries, and oil and gas production, among others.
You can read this amendment in full in English on the link below:
You can also read the consolidated version of the Regulation Governing Environmental Permits on the link below:
The Ministry of Transport, Communications, and Information Technology (MTCIT) recently announced a public consultation regarding a draft National Artificial Intelligence Policy. This draft policy suggests that the MTCIT does not wish to impose any serious restrictions on the ability to use AI systems in Oman as the policy will not be a legally binding document and will not impose any concrete obligations on the providers or deployers of AI systems in Oman. This is a reasonable approach for the MTCIT to take as the technology of AI is still developing and imposing unreasonable restrictions at this stage might deprive Omani society of the ability to experiment with and explore the possibilities offered by AI.
The Ministry of Labour published in this week’s Official Gazette Decision 451/2024 Determining the Rules for Settlement and Abandonment of the Lawsuit for Crimes Punishable under the Labour Law, which repeals Decision 561/2009 and creates a new framework for settling violations of the Labour Law.
Under the 2009 decision, it was required to pay half the maximum fine prescribed for a violation in order for it to be settled. The new decision reduces this amount by requiring the payment of a quarter of the maximum fine for the crime only. The old decision also had a restriction where it was not allowed to settle a violation that involved more than 10 workers or if the same violation is reported more than twice, however, the new decision removes this requirement and introduces a new requirement to pay a 1,000 Rial Omani fine in regard to violations involving multiple employees pursuant to article 143(1) of the Labour Law.
The new decision also provides a more comprehensive framework for submitting applications for settlement and provides additional details for the cases in which a non-Omani worker has to be deported.
You can read this ministerial decision in full in English on the link below: