Q: I am a US citizen (father of a 9-year-old). I recently got divorced and have sole legal and primary physical custody of my child. My wife is allowed only 1 visit with my child (for 2 hours each week, under the supervision of a 3rd person). My wife has unaddressed mental health issues. This is documented in the Parenting Plan and Divorce Decree. If I move to outside the UAE, can my wife again file for revision of custody? Will my US divorce and parenting plan be considered by the courts in the UAE?

Q: Hello, I am a British citizen Living in the UK, and my ex-wife who is also a British citizen lives in Abu Dhabi, UAE with our 8-year-old daughter who is also British. We have been divorced by the UK court last year in Dec 2017- A financial order has also been passed by the UK court for Clean Break last month in her absence as she did not attend any hearings here in the UK. We had an informal contact arrangement prior to divorce whereby I was flying out from the UK to see my daughter in the UAE. But since October 2017 she has stopped me from seeing my daughter. I am told that the UK law cannot be enforced in the UAE and so, therefore, I am left with no choice but to pursue child contact through the UAE courts. During this period, I started a maintenance payment for the child via my bank account in the UK to her bank account in the UK, which she is not happy with as she demanded more. Also, if the UAE court does allow me a contact, the contact has to be practical as I cannot fly every other weekend. Where do I go from here?

Q: We are in the process of getting a divorce and we have 3 kids. Custody will likely be given to the wife and guardianship to father. Can she take the kids and move from our current home in Dubai to Abu Dhabi just because she works there? Our family has lived in Dubai since 2004, my current job and kids school are also based in Dubai. Please advise.

Q: Hello, I kindly ask for clarification of the following situation: The Dubai Family Court of First Instance gave the father visitation rights, and he has a Sharia Execution Case for implementation. At the appeal, it was a tragic verdict: the judges rejected his visitation rights because the marriage was invalidated due to religious differences. - Is this decision implemented automatically, or is there an execution procedure, with an execution writ, similar to the first instance? - Is it possible for the father to still meet the child until the execution procedure is completed? - Does Chapter 5 of the Federal Decree by Law on Promulgating the Civil Procedure Code, which deals with Executing Execution Writs and Decisions Related to Personal Status Matters, apply to the appeal or only to the first instance? Thank you!

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.

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.