Q: The landlord has filed a case against me for not paying the shop rent. I notified the owner when I sold the shop in Feb 2022 and the POA was given to the new owner but he took my EID in the contract for renewal. He said it was just for one month and after that, the new owner would cancel the contract because he didn’t have EID for renewal. I requested NOC several times from the landlord but they didn’t give it to me. My contract in which he took my signature expired on 16 March 23 and all the cheques were paid, and the payment was done by a third party too till Sept 24. From March 23 till Sept 24, I didn’t make any agreement with the landlord. Also, the trade license expired in Dec 2023 and was not renewed. I have no idea how the landlord collected cheques till Sept 2024 without a contract, and he doesn’t have any copy of the contract with him. Now he filed a case against me with old documents instead of the new owner's name in the case. It is sold to 3 people after me. My question here is, am I liable to pay the rent and fines?

Q: Dear Lawyers, I received a rental apartment eviction notice from Dubai courts, which was sent and signed by a power of attorney. However, the property has two owners. Do both owners need to authorize the POA, and is there a way to check if the POA is actually authorized to send the notice? Is it possible that the POA has authorization from only one owner and was still able to send the notice?

Q: Dear Experts, I am currently in the process of buying a property in Dubai. To arrange payment, I need to pay the seller via a manager's cheque. I am not a UAE resident and am currently in Saudi Arabia. Can I transfer the money to my friend's bank account in Abu Dhabi and use his account to produce the manager's cheque in the seller's name? Can I then present that cheque while completing the transfer by physically attending myself?

An interview-format article covering the topic of residential retail properties pertaining to the liability for property maintenance and the repercussions of defaulting on rent payments in the UAE. This is from the legal podcast of lawyer Ludmila Yamalova, the founder of Lawgical with LYLAW.

Provisions of this Law supersede articles (2), (3), (4), (9), (13), (14), (15), (25), (26), (29), and (36) of Law No. (26) of 2007 Regulating the Relationship between Landlords and Tenants in the Emirate of Dubai. 

The provisions of this Law apply to real property leased out in the Emirate of Dubai, including vacant and agricultural lands, but excluding hotel establishments and real property provided by natural or legal persons as accommodation to their employees at no charge.