UAE Law and Practice Contributed by: Hassan Elhais, Awatif Mohammad Shoqi Advocates & Legal Consultancy
If there are proceedings ongoing in another country, such proceedings may not suspend those of the UAE courts as long as there is no final judgment from the foreign courts.
Service is carried out by the court via email, SMS, phone, or delivery by a court clerk. If the respondent is unavailable, and in exceptional scenarios, the court may authorise adver - tisement in the newspaper or posting on the respondent’s door. 2.3 Division of Assets There is no concept of a property regime or division of assets in the UAE. Under UAE Law, title determines asset ownership. Accordingly, whether acquired before or during the marriage, each spouse would maintain their own assets after divorce if acquired in their name. However, if a spouse shows that they helped purchase a property, they would be entitled to seek their share of that property from the other party. In accordance with Federal Decree-Law No 31/2023 Concerning Trust, the competent court, as described in civil procedures law, has juris - diction in the UAE over matters regarding trust. There is no mandatory disclosure process in the UAE. However, in accordance with Abu Dhabi Law No 14 of 2021 (applicable for non-Muslims in Abu Dhabi), disclosure is voluntary before the Abu Dhabi Civil Family Court. The requesting party needs to apply for the court to investigate the assets of the other party with the relevant departments, banks, and other authorities to establish the other party’s financial position before the court, and to support their financial claims. 2.4 Spousal Maintenance Article 63 of Federal Law No 28/2005 on Person - al Status (applicable until 15 April 2025 for Mus - lims) provides that a husband is obliged to cover maintenance expenses such as food, clothing, accommodation, medical treatment, domestic
2. Financial Proceedings 2.1 Choice of Jurisdiction
There are no separate jurisdictional grounds to commence financial proceedings in the UAE. The jurisdictional grounds for divorce mentioned in 1.2 Choice of Jurisdiction shall also apply for financial claims. Similar to divorce proceedings, if none of the criteria to establish jurisdiction in the relevant personal status laws or the civil procedures laws are satisfied, then a party may contest the main - tainability of the case on jurisdictional grounds. Also similar to divorce proceedings, if there are ongoing proceedings in another country, such proceedings cannot suspend UAE court pro - ceedings as long as there is no final judgment from the foreign courts. If the UAE courts have jurisdiction on the dispute, then the courts will review the financial claims made on the basis of the facts and merits of the case, even if such claims were made after a foreign divorce. 2.2 Service and Process There are no specific procedural rules, particu - larly for service of financial proceedings in the UAE. The rules governing civil procedures in the UAE also apply for financial proceedings. These rules are codified under Federal Decree-Law No 42/2022 on the Promulgation of the Civil Pro - cedure Law. At the time of registration of the lawsuit, the applicant has to provide the contact details of the opposing party. Once the lawsuit is registered, the court informs the respondent.
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