Abu Dhabi Opens Specialized Court to Fight Human Trafficking

Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan signed Resolution No. 40 of 2026 this year, and with it, Abu Dhabi became home to a court built for one purpose: prosecuting human trafficking.

The resolution, issued in his capacity as Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Judicial Department, restructures how the emirate handles trafficking crimes entirely. Rather than routing cases through a general court system alongside unrelated matters, Abu Dhabi has created a dedicated judicial pathway that runs from investigation through to appeal under one roof.

Additional reference context is available at https://www.mediaoffice.abudhabi/en/government-affairs/in-his-capacity-as-chairman-of-abu-dhabi-judicial-department-mansour-bin-zayed-issues-resolution-establishing-specialised-court-for-human-trafficking-crimes/.

For people caught up in trafficking cases, whether as victims, accused, or witnesses, that structural change has a direct consequence. Cases move faster. The court that hears the initial charge is the same system that handles the prosecution and, if needed, the appeal. Three operational layers bind together: a dedicated Public Prosecution unit to investigate and prosecute allegations, Courts of First Instance to hear trials, and Courts of Appeal to review convictions and sentences. Officials say this vertical integration is designed to eliminate the procedural delays that arise when trafficking cases drift between judicial divisions handling entirely different offences.

The consolidation extends to cases already in progress. All existing human trafficking matters in Abu Dhabi courts will transfer to the new specialised court. The one exception covers cases where pleadings have already closed, which will remain where they are. Every other ongoing prosecution, and all future ones, will flow through a single judicial channel.

Officials framed the move as part of broader efforts to strengthen legal protections and uphold human dignity and rights through faster, more focused adjudication. The resolution states the integrated framework is designed to enhance the efficiency of judicial procedures and accelerate the adjudication of cases.

By contrast, what the resolution does not yet specify is also telling. There is no stated timeline for the court’s opening or for the transfer of existing cases. Details on staffing, budget, victim support services, and training for judges and prosecutors assigned to the court are absent from the text. Those operational decisions fall to the undersecretary of the Abu Dhabi Judicial Department, who holds responsibility for issuing the directives needed to activate the court and keep it running efficiently.

The new court’s jurisdiction covers all human trafficking cases arising within Abu Dhabi, making it the sole venue for such prosecutions across the entire emirate going forward.

Abu Dhabi’s approach mirrors a pattern seen elsewhere, where dedicated trafficking courts or prosecution units have been established with the aim of making prosecution more visible, consistent, and harder to delay through judicial specialisation.

Whether Abu Dhabi’s new court delivers on that intent will depend on the operational decisions still to come, particularly around victim support and the training of the judges and prosecutors who will handle these cases day to day.