Q: (1) How much maintenance percentage is required to be paid by a husband (working) who divorces his wife (not working) and has one daughter to support? (2) We are British citizens living in the UAE and own a home in the UK. Will the UAE law force me to rent additional accommodation for her when I can provide a home in the UK? Many thanks

Q: I am an Indian citizen residing in Dubai since 2010 post my marriage which took place in India. I have a 6-year old daughter. I and my husband have mutually agreed to get divorced. I want to know the things which I am eligible to receive from my husband by default. I want help.

Q: Scenario: My wife has gone to her father's home 1.9 years ago (within the UAE) & now she has filed a case that I should provide her & our daughter with a separate home & cover up other living expenses which I can't afford & this can be proved via financial statements as I am under loan. I am living with my parents (4-bed villa) and we are 4 people living here. She had a separate room, bathroom; all necessities of life are covered here in my father's home. She initiated the case at family reunion council & I went there & it didn't work. The reason she states "doesn't want to live with my parents at the union council". In this period of 1.9 years, I myself & many other relatives have tried to sort out the matter but no success. On a number of occasions, I have asked her to come back. Proofs available (Whatsapp messages). My question now is should I open a case of home return on her or defend the case opened by her, which is better? Or if there is some other suggestion, please feel free to mention.

Q: Good afternoon, My brother is getting a divorce in Dubai. Both he and his wife are not Muslim but the divorce is done through Shariah Law. His wife started proceeding in the family section with conciliators but herself never came and finally, the conciliator forwarded the case to the court. In the first instance, it was granted a divorce without compensation (following also meeting with arbitrators) but both appealed the first instance decision. His wife is now asking for Motaa (divorce present) in the appeal. His salary is around AED 65k. Does he have to pay for it? How much approximately could it be?

س: السلام عليكم، لتعذُّر إثبات الطلاق للضرر نظرًا لعدم وجود شهود، فقد طلبت الخلع مقابل منحي كامل حقوق نفقات الأبناء. ابني عمره 11 سنة وابنتي 10 سنوات، ولكن في التوجيه الأسري حُكم لي فقط بنفقة مقدارها 6100 تشمل: 2500 البيت والكهرباء والماء و3000 نفقة الولدين و600 حضانة على أن تكون مصاريف الدراسة والعلاج على الزوج. رفض الموجه طلب بدل استقدام خادمة، وراتب خادمة، وبدل مواصلات، وبدل إنترنت، وبدل كسوة العيدين والصيف والشتاء، إضافة إلى إلزامي بتسليم حضانة الولد والبنت حين بلوغ السن القانوني وهذا ما رفضته تمامًا و بشدة. علمًا بأن الخادمة موجودة عندنا ويُصرَف لها راتب 1800، ومتوفر سيارة، ويصرف أبنائي من 1500 - 2000 شهريًا على الملابس و2000 ترفيه (500 كل أسبوع)، و600 رصيد هاتف، و1500 مطاعم. أود التنويه إلى أن راتب الزوج 28000 درهم. وعليه التزام واحد للبنك قيمته 5000 ليصبح صافي الدخل 23000 درهم.  بناءً على دخله، ما النفقة المصرَّح لي المطالبة بها؟ وهل يؤخذ بعين الاعتبار نمط حياة الرفاهية التي يعيشها الأبناء حاليًا؟ وشكرًا!

Q: Dear Sir, My wife and I are both residents of the UAE and are both Muslims, married in India under Sharia Law, and registered in the UAE. While my visa is sponsored by my company in Dubai, she is staying with her parents in Abu Dhabi. We are not staying together since Sept 20 as she was not a good wife to me. We don’t have any children. In Jan 2022, she filed a maintenance case against me in Abu Dhabi court. There was a video conf. call with personal status court. Yesterday, I got another message again from the court to attend the video conference call. The next date they gave us was on 17 May 2022. Hence I request you to please advise me why they asked for my salary certificate. Will they ask me to pay monthly maintenance to her? If yes, then how much would it be monthly? Does the maintenance come under Sharia law even though we are not divorced yet? Please note that she has blocked me over WhatsApp, kept on abusing me from time to time since she is with her father and many more bad things from her relatives' side. Thanks.

س: لدي مطالبة مالية بشيك مرتجع ٥٠٠ ألف للزوجة، وأيضاً نفقة بعد الطلاق تقدر ب ٤٠٠ ألف. كيف لي تقديم طلب تقسيط مبلغ المطالبتين حيث أنني لا أملك المبلغ بالكامل وأستطيع دفع مبلغ مقدماً يساوي ٥٠% من مجموع المبلغ المطلوب؟ هل سيوافق القاضي أم سأصطدم برفض طليقتي للتقسيط قي محاولة منها لإدخالي إلى السجن؟ أم أن القاضي سيرفض دخولي إلى السجن ويوافق على التقسيط؟ القضايا في محاكم دبي

Q: Dear sir/madam, Am I allowed to start opening a case against my husband for alimony and support if I have not given birth yet? Or do I have to wait until I give birth and then open a case against him?

There are rights and obligations for both parties of the marriage contract arise as a result of divorce, which often disputed by the spouses. Here we will explain the due alimony and its types for the wife (divorced - widow) and children after divorce in accordance with the UAE Personal Status Law, Federal Law No. 28 of 2005 and its explanatory memorandum.

An interview-format article covering the topic of the legal & psychological effects of COVID-19 on marriage. This is from the legal podcast of lawyer Ludmila Yamalova, the founder of Lawgical with LYLAW.

An interview-format article covering the topic of custody and guardianship in the UAE. This is from the legal podcast of lawyer Ludmila Yamalova, the founder of Lawgical with LYLAW.

الأسرة هي عماد المجتمع، ويدور صلاحه مع صلاحها وجوداً وعدماً، فأن فسدت الاسرة فسد المجتمع؛ ولذلك اعتنت الشريعة الإسلامية بتنظيم العلاقات الاسرية أيما عناية. فالزوج والزوجة هما الأصول التي يتفرع منها الأبناء، فإن لم تستقِم العلاقة بينهما انعكس ذلك على بقية أفراد الاسرة من الأبناء وبالتالي فسد مجتمع الأسرة. وفي دولة الامارات العربية المتحدة يولي المشرع اهتماماً بشؤون الأسرة من خلال قانون الأحوال الشخصية الإماراتي وتقنينه من وقت لآخر بإجراء عدد من التعديلات عليه لكي يتماشى مع أوضاع الأسرة المختلفة.

Joint Custody in UAE Law Article 10 of the Federal Decree Law No. 41 of 2022 on Civil Personal Status for Non-Muslims shines a spotlight on the significance of Shared custody following divorce. This article recognizes joint and equal custody as a right for both the father and mother post-separation or divorce.

UAE Personal Status Law (also known as Personal Affairs Law) governs marriage, divorce, inheritance and other personal affairs in the United Arab Emirates. The law equally applies to citizens of the UAE and non-citizens unless one of them asks for the application of his home country law.