Ordinary Judiciary

The ordinary judiciary encompasses all disputes:
Commercial law disputes.
Companies, banks, insurance.
Criminal and penal law disputes.
Civil law disputes.
Tourism, hospitality, and tourist guidance law disputes.
Broadcasting and telecommunications law disputes.
Intellectual property, trademarks, and media production law disputes.
Personal status and family law disputes.

It is also called civil judiciary and is regulated by Articles 184/189 of the 2014 constitutional amendment and Law No. 46 of 1972, as amended, regarding the judicial authority. According to Article 188 of the Constitution, it is responsible for adjudicating all disputes and crimes except those under the jurisdiction of another judicial body.
According to Article 15 of the Judicial Authority Law, the jurisdiction of the ordinary judiciary extends to all disputes and crimes except administrative disputes under the jurisdiction of the State Council, as well as what is excluded by a special text, including, for example, acts of sovereignty, which are a set of actions characterized by a political nature—whether related to internal or external affairs.

01. Public Prosecution Branch

It is an integral part of the judiciary, responsible for investigation, initiating, and conducting criminal cases except what is excluded by law. The law defines its other competencies (Article 189/1 of the Constitution and Articles 21 to 27 of the Judicial Authority Law No. 46 of 1972).

02. Courts Branch

The jurisdiction of ordinary courts is determined by Article 188 of the Constitution, which states that "the judiciary is responsible for adjudicating all disputes and crimes, except what is under the jurisdiction of another judicial body...". Article 15 of the Judicial Authority Law states that "except for administrative disputes under the jurisdiction of the State Council, the courts are responsible for adjudicating all disputes and crimes except what is excluded by a special text.". Article 17 of the same law states that "the courts may not directly or indirectly review acts of sovereignty, and they may, without referring the administrative matter or suspending its execution, adjudicate civil and commercial disputes between individuals and the government or public bodies regarding real estate or movable property, except in cases where the law provides otherwise or in all other matters that the law grants them the right to review.".

Courts and Their Jurisdictions

According to Article 1 of the Judicial Authority Law, the courts consist of:

Court of Cassation

It is one court in the Arab Republic of Egypt, headquartered in Cairo, and specializes in reviewing appeals in criminal judgments issued by criminal and misdemeanor courts of appeal, and in civil judgments issued by high courts of appeal or primary courts in an appellate capacity or economic courts in cases stipulated by law.

High Courts of Appeal

There are eight courts at the republic level located in Cairo and several other governorates, each specializing in criminal cases and appeals of civil judgments of all types issued by primary courts within its local jurisdiction according to the legal organization.

Primary Courts

They are located in the capital of each governorate and specialize in hearing primary civil cases of all types within their jurisdiction, both in value and type, and also function as courts of appeal for civil and criminal judgments issued by summary courts in cases specified by law.

Summary Courts

They are located in each district or administrative division and specialize in hearing civil cases of all types within their jurisdiction, and criminal cases of misdemeanors and violations occurring within their jurisdiction, except what is excluded by law, such as press misdemeanors, which are under the jurisdiction of criminal courts.

Economic Courts

Established by Law No. 120 of 2008 to specialize in economic cases related to investment, whether criminal or civil, aiming to achieve the idea of specialized judiciary for economic development cases. Their jurisdiction is part of the ordinary judiciary, and in terms of court hierarchy, they are, according to Article 1 of their law, “established within the jurisdiction of each court of appeal, called the Economic Court, and its judges are selected from among primary and appellate court judges, and it consists of primary and appellate circuits. Article 4 of the law specifies the types of crimes under the jurisdiction of the Economic Court (misdemeanors – felonies), and Articles 6 and beyond specify the disputes under the jurisdiction of economic courts and how they are reviewed, then appealed to the Court of Cassation.