Q: I gave AED 200K amount to my friend to start up a new restaurant in Abu Dhabi. For the last 1 year, he did not pay me anything and always have some excuses. Need legal advice about my rights and how to handle this situation.

Q: My friend borrowed money from me for AED 50,000 and issued a cheque of the same amount as a guarantee drawn against her business account under sole establishment. We also signed an agreement that she will pay 7% each month for 6 months as an interest. In short, it's been more than a month she has not returned the AED 50,000 to me and I already presented her cheque and got bounced for insufficient funds. Can I file a civil case directly against her for bounced cheque without filing a criminal case first? What if my friend tells the court that I lend money with interest and showed the agreement we signed, will the court punish me or put me in jail? Kindly advise, what is the best thing to do?

Q: I gave one of my friends AED 50,000 back in Aug 2019 as a "Friendly Loan", and he promised to give it back within 45 days as he was facing some financial issues which I helped him based on our previous relationship. I have from him a written letter with his name and signature stating that I gave him the money and he will return it within 45 days. The payment was delayed and I kept asking him when he can repay the money. He was giving lots of excuses on the market which I gave him lots of break time to repay even with instalments to make it easier on him and can repay the loan but until now, we are in the same position. He jumps from a story to another until I could not believe him any more that he will return the money. I have many Whatsapp chats, his car registration and I would like to know how can I proceed to get my money from him and what will it cost me for that? All my letters and conversations are in Arabic.

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

The provisions of this law, promulgating UAE Civil Code, govern the civil transactions in the United Arab Emirates. The commercial transactions remain subject to the laws and regulations applicable in their regard.

The law promulgates UAE Civil Procedures Code (Civil Procedure Law) which governs civil procedures in the United Arab Emirates, including the prosecution before the courts, litigation and execution.

The provisions of this law On Evidence in Civil and Commercial Transactions (Law of Evidence) govern evidence in civil and commercial disputes in the UAE.