The key aim of this study is to provide an overview of students' and instructors' attitudes and perceptions towards the potential benefits and challenges of summative e-assessment for their writing courses at a UAE university. A mixed method of quantitative and qualitative analysis is used. The findings of the study revealed that a majority of student participants reported reasonable satisfaction with the e-assessment tool in terms of screen layout and background, interface design and ease of use and access. However, they indicated their preference to "pen and paper" exams. Instructor participants identified a number of challenges associated with using summative e-assessment in the writing courses, which would require educational institutions to make changes to promote the success of e-assessment.