Judicial principles and studies
Decisive and Supplementary Oaths and the Probative Weight of Computer Outputs
A concise summary of procedural rules on decisive and supplementary oaths and the evidential status of computer outputs under the Evidence Law and the Court of Cassation's practice.
Updated: 10 September 2026
Prepared and reviewed by: Ashraf Al-Khawaja
Subject
This summary addresses three practical evidence issues: the rules on decisive oaths and the waiver effect of accepting them, the role of the supplementary oath as a means to complete the court’s conviction, and the probative status of computer outputs attributed to a party under Article (13/3/c) of the Evidence Law.
Summary
- Decisive oath: Article (53/2) permits the court to inform a party unable to prove a claim or defense of the option to face a decisive oath; the party then chooses between accepting the oath or relying on its submitted evidence. Acceptance of a decisive oath operates as a waiver of other evidence concerning the fact in question under Article (61/1); if the oath is sworn, the dispute on that fact is finally resolved and excluded evidence may no longer be reasserted. - Supplementary oath: Article (1/70) authorizes the court to direct a supplementary oath to one party when the submitted evidence is insufficient; the oath serves a complementary evidential role to complete the court’s conviction and is directed to the party whose proof the court finds more persuasive. - Computer outputs: Article (13/3/c) attributes ordinary probative force to computer outputs attributed to the opposing party; the party against whom such outputs are relied upon bears the burden of proving that the outputs were not produced, authenticated, signed, or assigned. This rule does not cover outputs prepared by a party for its own proof, since a party may not fabricate evidence for itself. Notice: This is an educational summary only, not a judicial text or legal advice.
Practical significance
This is a general educational summary based on the points published in the official source. It does not replace the original material or a review by Ashraf Al-Khawaja before relying on it for any action.
Sources and references
Verify the official text and latest amendments before relying on this material professionally.