Questions & Answers - Legal Advice Middle East

The rights and custody of a child when the father loses his job and leaves the UAE

Q: I am the father of a young child and his sponsor. Recently, I lost my employment in the UAE. I will soon need to leave the country back to my home country. My ex-wife has full custody and resides on her own visa in the UAE. I have been paying monthly child maintenance and annual housing to my ex-wife despite the restriction she has been placing on my ability to see my child since the divorce several years ago and has neither seen him nor heard him for the past 6 months. - How can I enforce my right to see my child once I leave the UAE? - What are my obligations in regards to alimony payment once I leave the country (considering the current economic situation, I don`t know how long I`ll be unemployed for)? - What are my obligations in regard to my child`s visa sponsorship considering that I will soon be forced to cancel his visa? - Is there any legal possibility for me to reclaim custody of my child?

The impact of individual owner's death on company operations

Q: Hi, I am starting an accounting and bookkeeping company in Dubai as a professional license. I would like to understand the impact that will be on the company if I die as the individual owner of the company. Alternatively, I could register the company to include a 10% partner with me. So please advise what will be the impact on the company in case I or my partner died. Kindly note that my question is about the impact of my death on my company, not about my estate. I want to know if the company`s operations will be impacted and if yes, then how can that be protected?

Rights of the second expatriate wife married to Emirati man

Q: Hello, I would like to ask. In November, I will marry (Sharia marriage) a civic party of the Arab Emirates (a citizen of Dubai) and I will be his second wife. But I`m a citizen of Ukraine. My fiancé gives me the same requirements and living conditions as the natives of Dubai. The fact that my child will have the same rights and will be like a child from the first marriage where the woman is a native of Dubai. But I read an article that, like his wife and a stranger, I have no legal personality (inheritance, rights of UAE citizens, money for childbirth from the state...etc.) of the UAE citizens...etc. I wanted to ask if it was true and where I can find this information somewhere. I used it on the UAE website but I didn`t find anything. Thank you very much

Consequences of leaving the UAE without a proper visa cancellation

Q: Dear Sir, Good Morning! Sir I need your advice; I worked in Dubai in 2018, but due to my family problem I came back to India, without cancelling the visa. Now my visa status is showing PERMANENT CLOSED. Please clarify the meaning.

Claiming insurance compensation after the death of brother

Q: Hi Mam This is Abdul Haseeb from Pakistan. My elder brother Abdul Qadeer has passed away in a road accident in Dubai on 18-07-2020. Can you help me out? How can I receive his death insurance claim?

Recovering money lost because of an online broker

Q: Dear Sir/Madam, I would like to complain regarding my online broker. Because of my online broker, I lost all of my money which was around 112000$ within 3 weeks in an online platform. Please advise If I can legally get back all of my money which I have lost because of that broker. Best Regards,

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حقوق الزوجة عند تطليقها بدون سبب وحضانة الأطفال

س: إذا أراد زوجي أن يطلقني بدون سبب ولدي ابنة عمرها سنتين ونصف ولدي إقامة عليه بالإمارات وراتبه ٢٥ ألف درهم، فكم المبلغ الذي ستضمنه لي المحكمة، وهل يستطيع أخذ حضانة الطفلة؟ وإذا كان يستطيع، فبناءً على ماذا؟

طلاق الوافدين في الإمارات أثناء وجود الزوجة في موطنها

س: السلام عليكم، أنا من فلسطين ومقيم بالإمارات ومتزوج من أردنية موجودة بالأردن. أرغب في الطلاق وهناك مهر متأخر قدره أربعة آلآف دينار. أسأل عن متطلبات وكيفية إنهاء عملية الطلاق وهل هناك متطلبات ألتزم بها؟ وشكرًا!

The consequences of being drunk in accommodation

Q: I got drunk while being off duty in my accommodation. Do I get fired?

Request for a procedure if an opponent makes a frivolous denial of documents

Q: Request for a procedure if an opponent makes a frivolous denial of documents. I registered a commercial case regarding my rights arising from three agreements signed between me and another party. The court appointed an expert. I submitted photocopies. The opponent denied the three agreements. The expert made an adverse draft report due to the denial of the agreements. The expert never asked me for the originals of the agreements. The opponent did not file a challenge of forgery after the denial of documents. What should I do? Should I give the originals to the expert or give them to the judge? How do I protest the frivolous denial of documents? Should I make a petition or a memo to judge? Please help me to understand the procedure.

Selling shares in a company to an existing shareholder

Q: I am a shareholder in an LLC DED company in the UAE. We are 3 shareholders. I would like to transfer/sell my shares to an existing shareholder in the company. However, the third shareholder refuses to sign on any documents regarding the transfer. Is this applicable? What could be done and what is the appropriate procedure?

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Recovering small amounts from a client and reporting the company on bad records

Q: One of our clients is not paying our invoices which are amounting only to AED 11,000. It`s already a year past due and they are not communicating back even their business is open and operational. Is it advisable to seek legal assistance? Can we report the company on Government so they can have a bad record? Kindly advise on the best action for all small amounts. Thank you!

Settling a disagreement among founders regarding a partner's role

Q: We have a founders` disagreement and need a third-party expert opinion to resolve the issue. Founder A (Founder & CEO) - Holds 51% equity in the company. Founder B (Co-Founder & Chief Business Officer) - Holds 39% equity in the company. The rest of the equity is split with angel investors. The disagreement is between the founders. Founder B is responsible for business development and sales. After clearly raising several times that Founder B is not brining revenue, not having proper sales pipeline to estimate our growth factor, justify current and onboarding investors, Founder A wants to change the role of Founder B. Since we have 4 years vesting, Founder A is asking justification to Founder B`s role and wants to bring in a new person by stopping equity vesting for the future for Founder B. However, Founder B is not willing to agree with this and is asking for both parties` equity dilute; not justifying to Founder A why Founder B is failing in the role.

Getting the money paid to husband for years and filing a divorce case

Q: I have been married for 8 years and have been supporting my husband financially since our marriage. He has been using my whole salary regularly. He has been forcefully asking me to continue my work life as well, as I wanted to quit my job due to certain health issues. He is using my salary for all our expenses and for his business/debt purposes & not sharing any of his income details. Besides, he is not available anytime for me and does not take responsibility for any of my basic and welfare needs. Though many of our family members advised us to have children, he delays it. He isn`t interested in having children as well. He is interested only in getting financial benefits from me. Somehow, his intentions do not seem right for me. Hence, it would be really great if I could get advice on this, mainly about the huge money that he has taken from me during these years. Will I be able to wholely claim it back legally? Plus, in addition to the alimony on divorce grounds, will I be entitled to compensation?

The due diligence before buying an existing business in the UAE

Q: I`m going to buy an existing business in the UAE (mainland company). Please advice: 1. How can I check whether the company has any existing liabilities in UAE banks? 2. What kind of documents shall I request from the company owner as a confirmation that he paid all his debts to the local agent? 3. Would I request any proof from the local agent? Thank you!

Termination of SPA and claiming refund after project cancellation

Q: I had Invested in an upcoming residential project in June 2018 & paid 20% of the total property value. But there has not been any progress in their construction & also checked with Dubai Land Department & the developer as well for the status, and learnt that it is probably under cancellation. I requested via email to the developer for a refund but they have instead suggested me to opt for an ongoing project or a ready to move in property. But I do not intend to proceed & want my money back at the earliest possible. I have the SPA & proof of payment made i.e. Invoice as well.