Upholding of arbitration awards based on Sharia law: threats to the rule of law and Europe’s fundamental principles

Question for written answer E-003464/2025
to the Commission
Rule 144
Petra Steger (PfE), Mary Khan (ESN)

On 18 August 2025, the Regional Court of Vienna published a judgment in which it upheld an arbitration award based on Sharia law. It concerned a civil dispute between two men who had previously agreed that an arbitration tribunal should rule in accordance with Islamic law. The Regional Court of Vienna upheld the arbitration award, which ordered one of the men to pay EUR 320 000, and declared it enforceable[1].

This judgment represents a significant boost for Islamic parallel societies and raises fundamental questions about the compatibility of such decisions with the rule of law in the EU. A critical examination needs to be carried out on the extent to which national court rulings based on foreign, sometimes extremist legal systems, such as Sharia law, are compatible with the fundamental principles of the rule of law, gender equality, freedom of religion and the protection of the rights of EU citizens. Against the background of uncontrolled mass immigration and growing social divisions, the Commission must make it clear that such judgments do not set any precedents and must in no way undermine the consistent application of EU legislation.

• 1.What does the Commission make of the Regional Court of Vienna's ruling, which upholds and declares enforceable a Sharia-based award?
• 2.What measures will it take to ensure that the recognition of such arbitration awards does not create a parallel justice system that undermines key EU principles such as the rule of law, equality and fundamental rights?
• 3.Does it agree that the upholding of Sharia-based awards risks exacerbating existing integration problems and fuelling social divisions in the Member States?

Submitted: 6.9.2025

• [1] https://www.diepresse.com/19997734/schiedsspruch-nach-scharia-in-oesterreich-gueltig