Legal drafting
Legal documents lawyer or typing centre: which one does your document need?
You need a legal documents lawyer, or a legal drafting service, when the words of the document are still to be decided: what powers to give, what to promise, what to declare and how far it reaches. A typing centre is enough when an office has already fixed the words and only wants the blanks filled. Notario Lawyers provides the drafting side of that choice.
The difference matters most in Dubai because so many documents end at a notary. The notary checks who is signing and whether they understand and agree. The notary does not rewrite a weak document into a strong one. If the text gives too much, too little or the wrong thing, it is notarised exactly as written, and you live with it.
Questions
A five question test
Answer these about your document. If you say yes to any of them, it needs drafting, not typing.
1
Is there a blank page?
Nobody has given you a form. You have to decide the content yourself.
2
Does it give someone power to act for you?
Signing, selling, collecting, representing or deciding in your name.
3
Does it involve money or property?
A payment, a debt, a share in a company, a flat, a car, a bank account.
4
Does it affect a child?
Travel, residence, schooling or guardianship.
5
Will a foreign office read it?
An embassy, a foreign bank, a pension fund or a court abroad, each with its own idea of what the document must show.
Side by side
Examples from everyday Dubai work
| Situation | Typing centre is enough | Needs legal drafting |
|---|---|---|
| A government application form with fixed fields | Yes | No |
| A bank's own authorisation form | Usually | Only if the bank asks for a separate letter |
| A letter letting your child travel with the grandparents | No | Yes: who travels, where, when, and who may make medical decisions |
| An agreement to settle money owed between two people | No | Yes: amount, instalments, what happens on a missed payment |
| A declaration for a foreign pension fund or tax office | No | Yes: the wording that office expects |
| A change of manager or partners in your company | No | Yes: resolution and MOA addendum that match the licence |
| Your will | No | Yes |
The pattern is simple. Forms with fixed fields belong at the typing counter. Anything where the words themselves protect or expose you belongs with someone who drafts.
What a legal documents lawyer does that typing does not
Asks before writing
Who signs? In what capacity? What exactly must the other side be able to do with this paper, and until when? A typist writes what you say. A drafter asks what you need, and often the two are different.
Picks the right instrument
Many people ask for an "NOC" or a "letter" when the receiving office needs an affidavit, a declaration or a power of attorney. The name changes the legal effect, and in Dubai it can change the notary's fee line too.
Checks authority
A person can only sign what they are entitled to sign. A manager signing for a company, a parent signing for a child and an heir signing for an estate each need a basis for that authority, and the document should state it.
Writes the limits
Dates, amounts, places and a clear end. Most disputes about a document start with a clause that had no limit.
Thinks about the reader
The notary, the bank, the embassy or the court reading the document later. Each reads it for a different purpose, and the drafting has to satisfy all of them.
Keeps the Arabic aligned
In Dubai the notary works from the Arabic text. If the Arabic column says something different from the English, the Arabic is what was notarised.
Checklist
Notary public services in Dubai for legal documents: who does what
People often expect one office to do everything. In practice three roles meet in one document.
You decide what you want and give accurate personal details.
The drafter turns that into a document with the right name, parties, clauses, limits and Arabic text. That is our work.
The notary public or a private notary verifies the people signing, confirms their capacity and consent, reads the content out and applies the seal.
Dubai's notaries fall under Dubai Law No. 4 of 2013 and Dubai Courts. Besides the government notary, Dubai Courts keeps a roll of private notaries: practising lawyers it has approved to carry out notarial acts. For a longer explanation of the roles, see our page on whether a lawyer is a notary public.
01
Legal documentation services across the UAE
The same test applies outside Dubai. What changes is the notary system. Federal Decree-Law No. 20 of 2022 governs notarial work across the UAE, with one exception in its Article 2: a local judicial authority whose notarial services are run under local legislation. Dubai falls in that exception, which is why Dubai fees and procedures can differ from the federal schedule. Abu Dhabi is another: its notary work runs under Law No. 11 of 2017 regarding the notary public in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi. When a document will be signed in another emirate, the drafting stays the same but the booking and the fee line change.
Watch for
Signs a document was typed, not drafted
01
It uses words like "all matters", "any purpose" or "full authority" with nothing after them.
02
It names people by first name only, or with a spelling that differs from their passport.
03
It has no date on which it ends.
04
It was copied from someone else's document, and still carries clauses about a situation that is not yours.
05
The English and Arabic versions differ in a date, a number or a name.
06
It refers to "the attached" but nothing is attached.
If your document has two or more of these, have it reviewed before the signing, not after.
When you do not need us
Not every task is a drafting task, and we will say so.
- Certified true copies of passports, degrees or bank statements are a copy check, done by our in-house notary public. See certified true copies.
- Fixed government forms only need completing as they are.
- Court cases and disputes need an advocate with rights of audience before the court. We draft documents; we do not represent clients in court.
How we help
We listen to what the document must achieve, choose the right instrument, and draft it in English with an aligned Arabic text. If you already have a draft, we review it and mark what needs to change. Every signatory then signs before our in-house notary public, in person, online or on a home visit, and we tell each of them what to bring. The notary verifies the signatories and notarises the document.
For the full list of documents we prepare, see our document drafting and notarization service. For agreements between two or more parties, see contract drafting.
Prices
Fees
| Service | Our service price |
|---|---|
| Drafting or typing (add-on) | From AED 200 |
| Affidavit (general, name, same name) | From AED 600 |
| Declaration (statutory, self, Canada) | From AED 600 |
| Legal notice | From AED 2,000 |
| Legal consultation | Quote on request |
All service prices are starting prices and are negotiable. Government fees are paid on top, at cost, exactly as the authority charges them. We confirm your final price before you pay.
The notary's fee is charged separately by the notary and depends on the kind of act. Under the federal schedule in Cabinet Resolution No. 19 of 2024, an affidavit costs AED 300 to execute and notarise, and a signature authentication on a document with no stated value costs AED 200 for each party. The full list is on our legal document fees page.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
If your question is not here, ask it on WhatsApp. Tell us what the document is for and who will sign it.
Is a typing centre document legally valid?
A document is not invalid because a typing centre produced it. The question is whether its content does what you need and whether the receiving office accepts it. Typing centres are the right place for fixed forms; the risk comes when a typed letter is used where drafting was needed.
Can I ask you only to review a document I already have?
Yes. Many clients bring a draft from a template, a colleague or the other party. We mark what is missing or risky and suggest wording before the signing.
Do I need a lawyer to get a document notarised in Dubai?
No. You can take a document to the notary yourself. Legal drafting is about getting the content right first, so that the document you notarise is the one you actually need.
What legal services do you not provide?
We do not act in court cases or disputes. For those you need an advocate who can appear before the court. We focus on the documents: drafting, translation, review and the signing.
How do I know which document I need?
Tell us who will receive it and what they asked for, ideally in their own words. The receiving office's instructions usually settle whether you need a letter, a declaration, an affidavit or a power of attorney.
Ask about your document
Call or WhatsApp +971 52 484 1790, or email support@notariolawyersuae.com with a photo of the document or the request you received. We are on the 10th floor, Battuta Gate offices, Dubai. Office open Monday to Friday, 9:00 am to 6:00 pm. WhatsApp and online requests answered 24/7.
Legal drafting
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Legal drafting
Document drafting and notarization in Dubai: we write the clauses, prepare the Arabic text and book the notary, so your document is ready to sign.
Sources for this page
- Federal Decree-Law No. 20 of 2022 on the regulation of the notary profession, Articles 2 and 7: https://uaelegislation.gov.ae/en/legislations/1563
- Dubai Law No. 4 of 2013 concerning Notaries Public in the Emirate of Dubai, Article 27: https://dlp.dubai.gov.ae/Legislation%20Reference/2013/Law%20No.%20(4)%20of%202013%20Concerning%20Notaries%20Public%20in%20the%20Emirate%20of%20Dubai.html
- Cabinet Resolution No. 19 of 2024, fee table items 8 and 12: https://uaelegislation.gov.ae/en/legislations/2491/download
- Abu Dhabi Judicial Department, Notary Public: https://www.adjd.gov.ae/EN/Pages/notarypublics.aspx