Kuwait Court of Cassation principle number 173

Summary: - Legislation is repealed only by subsequent legislation expressly so providing or containing a provision conflicting with it, regulating the subject matter anew. - The issuance of legislation regulating anew a subject matter previously regulated by earlier legislation. Its effect. Repeal of all provisions contained in that legislation. An example concerning the repeal of Law No. 3 of 1961 concerning printing and publishing by Law 3 of 2006 and the obligation to comply with the conditions stipulated in the latter Law for an applicant for a licence and its renewal. Rule: It is established in the case law of this Court that a licence issued by the administrative authority is an administrative act effected by the decision granting it, and is subject to amendment or cancellation whenever a public interest so requires or grounds justifying it arise. Article (3) of Law No. (3) of 2006 concerning printing and publishing provides that (Any person may establish or operate a printing press, open a shop for the sale or rental of publications, or for publishing, distribution or translation, or an advertising and publicity office, or an establishment for artistic production in relation to this Law, after obtaining a licence therefor from the competent ministry. The applicant for the licence must satisfy the following conditions: 1- Be of Kuwaiti nationality and have full legal capacity. 2-............ 3- ...... 4-...... If the applicant for the licence is a legal person, all founders or partners must be Kuwaitis, and the foregoing conditions must be satisfied by the person managing the activity. Article (32) of the Law provides for the repeal of Law No. 3 of 1961 promulgating the Printing and Publishing Law. Article (2) of the Kuwaiti Civil Code provides that legislation is repealed only by subsequent legislation expressly providing for its repeal or containing a provision conflicting with it. If legislation is issued regulating anew a subject matter previously regulated by earlier legislation, all provisions contained in that legislation are repealed. This means that, when reorganizing the licensing of shops for the sale or rental of publications, publishing, distribution or translation, advertising and publicity offices, and establishments intended for artistic production, the legislature prohibited non-Kuwaiti natural persons from carrying on their activities. If the applicant for the licence is a legal person, all founders or partners must be Kuwaitis. Compliance with this condition must be verified both when a licence is first granted and when earlier licences are renewed, even if it is not expressly stipulated in the Law. This follows from the repeal of the former Law concerning printing and publishing, No. 3 of 1961, under which the appellant company was granted its licence. Accordingly, when applying for renewal of the licence, it must comply with the new conditions set out in Article 3 of Law No. 3 of 2006 in the manner indicated. It is established from the appellant company's memorandum of association that one of the partners is not Kuwaiti. Accordingly, it may not be licensed to engage in the two activities of advertising and publicity and artistic production until it regularizes its position by amending its memorandum of association so that all partners are Kuwaitis. There is no merit in what it raises in its grounds of challenge concerning the applicability of the provisions of Law No. 32 of 1969 concerning the granting of licences for commercial shops, permitting licences to be granted to companies whose members consist of Kuwaitis and non-Kuwaitis.