7th edition of ‘Legislative Week' concludes, setting roadmap for more flexible, proactive legislative ecosystem

February 11, 2026: The seventh edition of the ‘Legislative Week’, the annual flagship event organised by the General Secretariat of the Supreme Legislation Committee in the Emirate of Dubai (SLC), concluded after three days of in-depth dialogue, collaboration, and forward-looking legislative exploration.

The event served as both an intellectual forum and a platform for engagement, bringing together a distinguished group of legal experts, legislators, and legislative stakeholders to contribute to shaping the next phase of the Dubai legislative development journey. Discussions centred on empowering individuals, protecting families, anticipating, and keeping pace with future developments.

Held under the theme ‘Legislation Empowering Family and Society for a Prosperous Future’, Legislative Week 2026 reinforced the role of legislation in strengthening family stability and societal prosperity, enhancing quality of life, and driving sustainable growth, in line with Dubai’s vision and forward-looking development agenda.

H.E. Dr. Ahmad Saeed bin Meshar Al Muhairi, Secretary General of the SLC, said: “This edition of Legislative Week has laid the foundation for a new approach to legislative development, designed to deliver meaningful social and economic impact. We intend to translate the outcomes and recommendations into proactive initiatives, charting a clear roadmap for the next phase of Dubai’s legislative excellence journey.”

H.E. Dr. Bin Meshar added: “The event underscores Dubai’s steadfast commitment to building a pioneering legislative model that serves as a benchmark for legislation centred on people and communities, underpinned by flexible legislative frameworks that anticipate the future. I extend my sincere thanks to all government partners for their contributions in enriching the discussions of Legislative Week 2026, as well as to the legal experts, specialists, and participating stakeholders who shared their valuable insights during the sessions.”

Day One Focus: Empowering Legislation, Education, Social Justice, and Quality of Life

The opening day of Legislative Week 2026 set the tone for in-depth discussions through a working paper titled ‘The Role of the Legislative System in Strengthening Community and Family Stability’, presented by Dr. Najat Ahmad Al Amri.

The programme featured several panel discussions on key societal topics. These included ‘The Future’, moderated by Mrs. Marwa Mohamed Ibrahim with contributions from Mr. Sultan Al Raeesi, Counsel Mohamed Ahmed Al Haddad, and Engineer Sanaa Abdullah Khalaf Al-Aleeli; ‘Education and Human Capital’, moderated by Mrs. Rafeeah Mohamed Al Owais, with Dr. Wafi Dawood and Mr. Khalid Al Marri as guest speakers; ‘Justice and Social Protection for Children’, moderated by Mr. Omar Mohamed Al-Suwaidi with speakers Lieutenant Colonel Dr. Ali Mohammed Al Matrooshi and Dr. Abdulaziz Al Hammadi; ‘Health and Quality of Life’, moderated by Mrs. Hamda Sulaiman Bin Sulaiman, featuring insights from Counsel Dr. Khalifa Basheer Ali Al Aleeli, Dr. Khalid Abdulla Lootah, and Dr. Amina Zaher Saleh; and ‘Empowering the Community Through Senior Citizens’, moderated by Mrs. Bushra Hamid Al Barawani, bringing together speakers Mrs. Mariam Ali Al Falahi and Dr. Bader Abdullah Al Ali.

Legislative Lab: A Practical Simulation of the Future of the Legislative Ecosystem

The second day featured the Legislative Lab 2026, a dynamic, hands-on platform that brought together specialised legal professionals from Dubai government entities through a series of interactive sessions and workshops. The discussions focused on key themes including community empowerment through legislation, education and human capital development, justice, social protection and empowerment, health and quality of life, as well as the future-focused, proactive legislation

The Legislative Lab served as a practical simulation of the future of the legislative sector, adopting a rigorous analytical approach to both existing and emerging legislation. It focused on testing the robustness of current legislative texts, identifying potential gaps, and developing innovative, evidence-based legislative solutions.

Day Three: ‘Behavioural Insights and Legislation’ Workshop

The final day of Legislative Week 2026 featured a practical workshop titled ‘Behavioural Insights and Legislation’, delivered by Mohammed Salah Al Etawi, Senior Legal Advisor and Head of the Technical Office at the SLC. The workshop explored the concept and importance of legislation, the characteristics of effective legislation, recent developments in the legislative field, and the vision of wise leadership for the emirate’s legislative framework.

A key theme, ‘From Text Integrity to Impact Gap’, examined the limitations of legislative texts in achieving their intended outcomes and the risks associated with legislative drafting in the absence of behavioural tools. Another theme, ‘Behavioural Insights as a Legislative Approach’, highlighted how behavioural insights enhance legislative quality, shape drafting methodologies, and can be systematically integrated into the legislative process.

The workshop further delved into Dubai’s experience in embedding behavioural insights into the legislative process. It concluded with a forward-looking theme titled ‘Future Horizons’, which discussed the future application of behavioural insights in the legislative field, the shift toward designing behavioural legislative impact, and the evolving role of the legal professional as architects of legislative impact.

Marked by broad participation and diverse discussion themes, the seventh edition of Legislative Week signals the beginning of a new phase in building a ground-breaking legislative ecosystem that regulates community life, anticipates the future, and empowers families, laying the foundation for a more stable and prosperous future for generations to come.