OMAN Law and Practice Contributed by: Mohammed Al Khalili, Jenna Al Bakry, Joud Lashko and Abdullah Al Raiisi, Al Khalili, Al Ghailani & Co LLP
Judicial Aid and Fee Exemptions The CCPL empowers the Minister of Justice and Legal Affairs, in co-ordination with the Ministry of Finance, to issue regulations governing judicial aid for indigent litigants. Although this framework is primarily intended for individuals, it may in practice extend to groups or associations acting collectively if they satisfy the means-testing criteria prescribed by regulation. Judi- cial aid typically covers court fees and related proce- dural expenses but does not extend to private legal fees. In administrative or regulatory collective actions, par- ticularly those initiated by the PACP under Article 13 of the CPL, costs are borne by the State ‒ given that such proceedings are executed ex officio in the pub- lic interest. This reflects Oman’s policy preference for publicly funded enforcement over private cost-sharing litigation. Comparative Policy and Practical Consequences The absence of contingency fees, cost-shifting excep- tions, or litigation funding has resulted in a restrained cost environment. Although this ensures procedural integrity and discourages speculative suits, it also lim- its large-scale private collective actions by dispers- ing financial responsibility among individual claimants. Consequently, collective redress in Oman remains confined to: • joint civil proceedings, whereby costs are divided contractually; and • public enforcement actions, whereby the State bears expenses on behalf of affected consumers. This system embodies the Omani policy of procedural prudence and judicial economy, maintaining access to justice while curbing the proliferation of privately financed mass litigation. In summary, the general rule in Oman is that the losing party bears the costs of the proceedings, including court fees and ancillary expenses. Funding is private, upfront and individualised, with no statutory mecha- nism for external financing or contingency-based representation. In cases of collective enforcement by regulatory authorities, costs are absorbed by the State, reflecting Oman’s broader policy of institutional
CCPL, the aggregate value of the combined claims forms the basis for fee assessment. Judicial costs encompass: • court filing and registration fees (articles 64–73 of the ccpl); • service of process and notification charges; and • expert and translation costs, if appointed by the court. The court retains discretionary power to apportion costs where success is divided among the parties or where equitable considerations so require. Costs are thus judicially controlled, not party-driven, and are intended to reflect compensation for procedural Omani law does not provide for collective fund- ing structures, litigation finance, or contingency-fee arrangements akin to those found in common law jurisdictions. Lawyers in Oman are compensated through fixed or hourly retainer agreements negoti- ated directly with their clients, and success-fee or “no- win-no-fee” models are generally prohibited under the Advocacy Law and professional-conduct regulations administered by the Ministry of Justice and Legal Affairs. In multiparty litigations conducted under Articles 60–61 of the CCPL, claimants ordinarily share court fees and expenses in proportion to their respective interests, unless they agree otherwise in writing. Where one attorney represents multiple parties by virtue of separate powers of attorney under Article 75 of the CCPL, each client remains individually liable for his or her share of professional fees, and the attorney must maintain separate accounting for each represen- tation to avoid conflicts of interest. expense rather than punitive sanction. Funding and Cost-Sharing Mechanisms Third-party funding, litigation syndication, and assign- ment of claims for speculative purposes have no legal recognition under Omani law and would likely be deemed contrary to public policy (ordre public) as interpreted by the Omani courts.
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