Question: I want to file a case against someone who mislead me into entering into an agreement based on false facts. He said he was a financial expert but I found he had no financial background. How can I prove fraud?
Answer: Firstly, to prove fraud, the name or characteristic assumed by the accused should lead the victim into handing over his property. What shall be considered to have 'lead' the victim is at the judge's discretion.
Secondly, there must be positive action from the deceiver to convince the victims of the false characteristic in order to be considered fraud. Hence staying silent shall not be considered fraud even if it misleads the victim into assuming the other's identity.
Thirdly, the characteristic undertaken by the one committing the fraud should not be evidently inconsistent. It should be such that an ordinary person does not immediately suspect a wrongful act.
If the above 3 conditions are met, it shall be considered fraud under Article 399 of the UAE Criminal code. If any of the above is in writing, it shall be an additional crime of falsification which carries a higher punishment and is a more serious crime. Is such cases, Article 88 shall apply which states that if a person is guilty of two crimes, he shall be punished for the more serious crime. As a result the person shall be guilty and punished for.
Question: I have just won a case in a foreign country but the properties of the person I won against are not in his home country but in the UAE. Can I execute the judgment I have received from a foreign court in the UAE?
Answer: Foreign financial Order can be enforced in the UAE further to Article 235 of the civil code. Such enforcement must meet certain strict conditions without which any enforcement is not possible. By applying 235, one is essentially apply foreign law through the local courts.
The foreign financial order must go through a process of attestation prior to being legible for enforceability. The process of attestation results in a mirror financial order issued through the local courts which can then be enforced.
The conditions for attestation are:
> Dubai courts did not have jurisdiction to deal with the original litigation
> The English order was produced by a competent court using the laws of England and Wales
> Both parties were given notice of the hearing and attended or were represented
> That the court had the jurisdiction to make the orders that it did
> The order does not conflict with orders previously made by the Dubai courts, and the orders do not breach public order or morals
The local courts have a lot of flexibility in the mode of enforcing these order. The local court can attach earnings, seize the property and goods, apply a travel van on the individual to force him to comply, order inquiries into the bank account.
A mirror order can be obtained by filing an attestation case by the parties.
Question: I suspect an expat living in Dubai is concealing his ownership of property in a financial settlement case (being held outside the UAE). How can I legally discover whether an individual owns property in Dubai, and what address that property is at?
Answer: This information is confidential and cannot be accessed without the court's permission, for which you would need to file a case for applying a mirror order of a foreign judgment, or claiming funds if the dispute is in regards to local debt, further to Article 235 of the Commercial Procedures Law, which deals with recognition of the foreign court orders.
In certain cases, a precautionary seizing order can also be applied for. If you are able to receive a favourable judgment from the local courts, you may apply for the executive seizing order.
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