A- This Regulation aims to uphold justice and the supremacy of Sharia and Saudi law, and to facilitate legal representation for all entitled individuals through a representative, by providing judicial assistance to the indigent, and to prevent financial hardship from being an obstacle between rights holders and their representation by an agent acting on their behalf, by ensuring the necessary assistance is provided to all who meet the criteria for judicial assistance, through assigning one of the attorneys the task of pleading and defending, and providing the necessary advice to secure rights.

B- This Regulation organizes the provisions for obtaining judicial assistance in the collection of legitimate rights.

C- The Regulation establishes what governs the relationship between applicants for assistance and the providers, who are attorneys who are members of the Saudi Bar Association.

1. Legal aid is: Professional services provided by an attorney for those whose financial situation does not allow them to pay attorney fees, enabling them to seek the assistance of an attorney during the investigation and trial phases before various law enforcement agencies, courts, and judicial committees, and to proceed with and complete these processes until a judgment is issued, notified, and contested when necessary through legal means and to carry out its execution.

2. Legal aid is provided for every case that arises and is heard before various judicial authorities in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

3. Legal aid is provided temporarily or permanently depending on the circumstances of the beneficiary of the aid.

4. All natural persons who have the right to claim, whether they are Saudi or expatriates, benefit from legal aid.

To be eligible for legal aid, the following conditions must be met:

• A- The case must be pending in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

• B- The applicant must be a natural person; legal entities are not entitled to request legal aid.

• C- The person requesting assistance must be qualified to defend themselves and does not require legal representation.

• D- The applicant's financial situation must prevent them from paying attorney fees.

• E- The applicant must prove their inability to pay attorney fees by attaching evidence to their request or providing a certificate from any local authority confirming their financial hardship, and that they fall below the recognized poverty line. The Board of Directors of the Authority may set a minimum income or wage threshold for those eligible for legal aid.

• F- The inability to pay attorney fees must persist throughout the trial period.

• G- It should not be apparent from the nature of the contest that the applicant for aid is not justified in their claim.

• H- Priority will be given to those who have not previously received assistance in the same case.

• I- If the attorney who is a member of the authority passes away or has an impediment to practicing their profession, and in general, in all cases where it is impossible for the attorney to practice their profession and follow up on the affairs and claims of their clients, the authority may request the transfer of the cases they handle to the legal aid fund.

The right of the aid applicant to obtain assistance is forfeited in the following cases:

• A. Lying or deceit in proving the state of hardship, or if it is found that the statements taken as the basis for responding to the claim were forged or incorrect.

• B. The inaccuracy of the claim or its expiration due to the lapse of legal deadlines.

• C. The intention to harm and delay in the claim.

• D. If it is apparent that the aid applicant is not justified in his claim.

• E. If the condition of the applicant changes and he is able to pay the attorney's fees.

• F. Judicial aid ceases upon the death of the applicant without this cessation having a retroactive effect. The heirs may, if necessary, submit a new claim.

• G. Unless there are additional aid hours available in the judicial aid fund, a person who has received judicial aid is not entitled to receive further assistance within (12) twelve months unless he is suspended on a charge that results in a penalty or imprisonment, or is a victim of domestic violence.

Requests for legal aid are submitted to the authority from one of the following entities:

• A. The President of the Court, or the Judge overseeing the case, or a committee with judicial jurisdiction.

• B. Government entities and university colleges that have cooperation with the authority.

• C. The Ministry of Justice, the Board of Grievances, and committees of a judicial nature.

• D. Directly applying to the Saudi Bar Association for legal aid from parties involved in various legal disputes.

1. The Saudi Bar Association shall establish a fund named "Judicial Assistance Fund," which will receive donations, bequests, endowments, and revenues that ensure its sustainable operation.

2. The financial amounts that enable the Association to assign attorneys for the benefit of those requesting judicial assistance shall be deposited in the Judicial Assistance Fund.

3. If the litigant wins the case, the court may order the opposing party to pay the expenses incurred by the Judicial Assistance Fund unless the other litigant is a beneficiary of the judicial assistance program, and those ordered expenses in favor of the litigant shall be deposited as attorney fees in the Judicial Assistance Fund.

4. The General Secretariat of the Association shall coordinate with the judicial court administrations and the committees concerned with judicial disputes, and shall work to provide a center or electronic platform for communication in each court or committee of a judicial nature to facilitate coordination and cooperation with the Association to provide assistance to those entitled to it.

5. The Association shall maintain a register that lists the names of attorneys wishing to volunteer to provide judicial assistance, called the "Volunteers Register," which is classified into three categories: (A) Criminal Cases, (B) Personal Status Cases, (C) Civil Cases.

6. The Association encourages the establishment of legal clinics in universities and training institutes and sets regulations for providing "judicial assistance" through which experience is counted for the purposes of obtaining a professional license, in accordance with the regulations of the Admission and Registration Committee.

Requests for assistance in criminal cases are submitted according to the following procedures:

• A. In major crimes specified in the Minister of Interior's Decision No. (2000) dated 10/6/1435 AH, coordination is made with the Ministry of Justice to determine attorney fees according to the rules of "Mechanism for Engaging an Attorney at State Expense for Defendants in Major Crimes".

• B. In crimes covered by the Child Protection System or Protection from Abuse, the authority collaborates with relevant entities to provide attorneys to represent and plead for the aggrieved persons.

• C. In other cases, engaging an attorney is subject to the authority's approval and its study of the subject matter of the assistance.

• D. The authority establishes a schedule for attorneys wishing to provide legal aid in criminal cases, so they can be engaged to handle those cases based on the order of registration in the schedule.