Previously, anyone who was convicted of drugs charges in the UAE could forget about ever stepping foot on UAE soil again thanks to automatic deportations after jailtime and a permanent ban on re-entry. However, the UAE's recent approach to drugs as a health issue and not a criminal issue has informed law changes that will see an end to automatic deportation. Judges have the discretion whether to impose deportation and defendants can appeal sentences, as Dr Hassan Elhais legal consultant at Al Rowaad Advocates tells The National newspaper. It also means anyone previously convicted and deported on such charges can lodge a petition to return to the UAE through a lawyer or family member inside the country.
New drug laws in the UAE have changed the legal picture on many counts, including on what is considered legal and illegal upon entering into UAE territory. In this article in the Khaleej Times newspaper, Al Rowaad Advocates Legal Consultant Hassan El Hais explains that cannabis products in food will be treated very differently to those in e-cigarettes or vapes. Beginning January 2, 2022, those caught with cannabis food products will have their goods confiscated and be given a warning, but will not face legal measures. However, cannabis oil for vapes are considered to have been purchased from unlicensed shops and with a degree of intention, and therefore no such exemption is granted.
The new legal approach to narcotic use embedded in UAE legal changes encourages a focus on rehabilitation and not punishment, with a raft of changes lessening jail terms, placing convicted users in drug rehabilitation centres instead of jails, and even making deportation at the end of a narcotics optional for judges. Al Rowaad Advocates Legal Consultant Hassan Elhais is quoted in this Gulf News article examining the main changes in legal amendments introduced, where he explains the desire of authorities to put public health and criminal justice concerns alongside security and law enforcement concerns.
The overhaul of the UAE’s drug laws, as part of a wide-ranging reform of more than 40 laws, will have some people gasping. The changes include the end to mandatory deportation of convicted drug users, a lessening of minimum sentences to three months for first-time offenders, and sentencing convicted users to rehabilitation programmes instead of jail.
Our client has had his death sentence overturned by the Supreme Court after a dramatic court process, as reported in The National newspaper. The 54-year-old British man found himself in need of money to travel home for medical treatment when a friend gave him an opportunity to make Dh3,500 in Dubai in 2018. The man, who had no previous drugs convictions, sold the drugs to an undercover police officer and was arrested and charged with intent to sell. However, I was able to point to procedural errors, including a change of judges in the case and a lack of clarity on whether the judgment was unanimous.
In my publication this week, I discussed range of areas such as: website to look at for bringing in permitted medicines in the UAE, list of required documents for extradition case, provision for urgent application for a suspect for extradition and lastly, why an individual could be convicted for public indecency if found under the influence of alcohol at a public place.
In my publication summary this week, I explained the applicable maximum sentence for sniffing glue in the UAE. I also explained about the legal process for a cheque bounce case in UAE.
In this weekly edition, I discussed about the applicable penalties for carrying and possessing marijuana in the UAE.
In my publication this week, I discussed about how the UAE courts assess the mental condition of an individual charged with the crime of attempted suicide.
In my publication this week, I discussed about the applicable penalties for bringing "Khat" (stimulant drug) into the UAE.
In my newspaper publication this week, I discussed about the possibility of being detained at UAE airport for carrying medication without a valid prescription.
Dr. Hassan Elhais warned the university students not to throw their future away by taking drugs. Lawyers are warning university students not to harm their future by abusing drugs, saying that the number of cases involving hard drugs is far too high.
Total Publications: 12
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