Questions & Answers - Legal Advice Middle East

Custodial rights

Q: I and my wife are going through the divorce. We are both expats. I work and she does not work. I am her sponsor. We have a one-year-old daughter. Who gets the custody of the baby after divorce? Once we get divorced, who will be her sponsor in the UAE? Does she have to leave the UAE? If she gets the custody, how can she stay in the UAE without a sponsor? If she does not have a sponsor, can I get the custody of my daughter?

Side agreement with a local partner

Q: Good day! Need legal advice. Dubai-based LLC company with a local sponsor, in accordance with side agreement local partner receives an annual fee. But the company license was frozen for a long period of time and local partner was informed about it. In this case, has the local partner a right to request to pay him annual fee even the license was frozen and there was no activity. Thank you in advance!

Employment dispute assistance

Q: I started working with a developer`s hotels & resorts on Aug 17, 2015, as Director of Digital. They hired another Digital Director in early April. I was terminated July 28th. I have refused to sign the letter as I was going to Ireland that afternoon. I contacted them 2 days after and I advised that I would sign the letter based on the following: * Full payment of 30 days notice & holidays owed. * Full payment of yearly bonus, which, unfortunately, I had to learn after the payment of bonus to other staff members management did not approve. No reason was given for this. * Payment of value of flight home per year of completion of 1 year. * Payment for flight changes in December 2015 as per management request - AED 4K. * Gratuity payment as per UAE employment law.No response has been forthcoming. Am I better to go legal and just deal with them directly through a legal team? Should I go to Ministry of Labour? Any advice on a good employment law specialist would be most grateful.

Freelance consultation agreement

Q: I received a request from an Indian company to do some freelance consultation for them based on my experience in my field. It sounded great until they send me few lengthy documents to sign with lots of legal language. They said its nondisclosure agreements and rights agreements.My question is: I am not sure if these documents could contain anything that could get me in trouble or get in me in court or cause liability on me. Please advice what should I do?

Limited employment contract termination

Q: Is it possible to terminate a 2-year-contract after one year due to low performance? The contract states that only reasons stated in article 120 Labor Law apply.

Early termination of tenancy contract in Dubai

Q: Hi, My rental contract expires in December 2016, however, since I can`t afford the rent I am giving my two months notice to vacate the place by September 2016 paying 2 months rent. However, the landlord tells me that I can`t stay in the place during my notice period and I still have to pay rent for 2 months. Please advise.

Hire a lawyer online

Save time and money. Buy fixed-fee legal services or submit your request and get multiple competitive offers from qualified lawyers.

Buy services Get quotes

Liability for the unpaid loan

Q: I was jailed for 4 months for not being able to pay a loan from a Dubai bank since I`ve lost my job in 2011. After my release, I tried looking for a job but was unsuccessful, so I went back to my home country when my visa expired but still the bank is sending emails and threatening me and wants to collect money from me. Now that I am back here in Dubai, they threatened to file a ban against me and told me that I cannot get my visa renewed if I will not pay them. Can the bank do such THING? I already have accepted the punishment of serving jail time since during that time I didn`t have a JOB and was totally broke. What can I do so that they will stop harassing me? What does the law say if someone had served the sentence for a bouncing check case? Thanks and hoping to be enlightened.

Limitation period for compensation claims in the UAE

Q: We were involved in a car accident last March 2016, we sustained some injuries because of that. Can we still file a case even if it has already been 4 months? The guilty party was already sentenced for 2 months for drunk driving last April 2016.

Using a car dashboard video recorder in the UAE

Q: I have a car video recorder that keeps recording traffic keeping a history of the last 4 hours. Therefore I have two questions: 1 — In case of a car accident, can I use this recording as proof of my innocence? 2 — Is it legal to have car video recorders in the car?

Divorce and division of assets in the UAE

Q: Hi, I am currently negotiating a divorce with my wife who is a Russian National. We got married in 2013 in Moscow ZAGs (Registry). I would like to know more about the division of assets upon divorce and what the correct procedures are, as I am in a deadlock with her negotiating. We bought a property in the UAE and both contributed equally towards the down payment. However, moving forward, all mortgage payments were made by me. I am trying to make an agreed settlement with my wife, however, she is asking more than what I feel is fair and equal. If I was to sell the property we would both end up with less. In fact, she will end up with significantly less than what I am offering her. I would like to speak to someone with regards to the divorce proceedings and what the correct procedure is.

Breach of tenancy contract

Q: Dear lawyers, I would like to ask you for an advice on my situation with the tenant. At the time of signing the contract we agreed to 3 cheques payment, but started defaulting. Now he is paying monthly.How can I change this situation? Can I also increase the rent in this circumstances? Or ask the tenant to vacate the property without one year notice? Thanks and regards.

Looking for something else?

Ask for advice from a lawyer

It’s free and anonymous

No registration needed

Ask a lawyer

Recovery of property lost due to fraud

Q: Dear sir,One of my friend promised me to get a job in Dubai and demanded for money and my degree. After arrangement of money I agree to pay 80K and sent my degree through courier.I paid 20000 directly in his Indian IDBI bank account and rest of 60000 by cheque in his same account in the month of march 2016. I have all whatsapp chat conversation and voice message from his Dubai no.Now he has shown his actual face and I came to know that I was traped.Is there any way to recover my amount from them?Thanks and regardMohammed jahangir

Legal actions on a salary delay

Q: My employer is constantly delaying the payment of salary. I don`t want to spoil the relationship with him, but I want to know if his actions are legal and if he could pay the parts of salary throughout the whole month. Salary in our company is paid by cash only. As I don`t have a copy of the employment contract, I can`t say whether anything is written concerning the terms of salary payment or not. How can I avoid this and what are my rights?

Property division in divorce

Q: Question about property division in Dubai after divorce: My husband divorced with his ex-wife. During their marriage, he bought property office unit (he paid money to buy it and he still paying for maintaining from his pocket) and gifted it to her. Now they divorced, can he get his half? What is Dubai law rules? They are in court proceedings for the property division in Russia, in case if he can agree with her to sign this unit under his name, is it acceptable for Dubai? What documents does he need to show here in order to do property registration back to his name?

Visas for Dubai property owners

Q: We are planning to buy a property in Dubai, shall we expect to get a residence visa? What will be the terms and conditions? How many relatives can I sponsor on this type of visa?

Advertising regulation in the UAE

Q: Will it be legal if I will print a sticker with the logo and contact details of my company and place it on my car? Or I should obtain any special permit? Thanks