Adoption in the UAE

Sadly a great number of children are abandoned in the United Arab Emirates each year. Most likely this is as a result of young mothers being fearful of the repercussions of bearing a child outside wedlock. It is a criminal offence in the United Arab Emirates to have a sexual relationship outside marriage. In practice without clear evidence of the offence, no criminal sanctions are implemented. However the birth of a child to unmarried parents is clear evidence.  6 newborn babies were found abandoned in the UAE in 2011 alone. The publicity of these abandoned children has led to the issue of adoption being discussed frequently in the local press.

The laws of the UAE prohibit adoption within the UAE by non-Emirati couples. This means that only Emirati citizens holding UAE passports may adopt abandoned children from the UAE. Expatriate couples residing in the UAE must look abroad to adopt children, typically to Ethiopia or Mexico. The adoption process for expatriates can still be conducted from the United Arab Emirates, regardless of the nationality of the parents.

Abandoned children that have been born in the UAE obtain can obtain UAE citizenship and a UAE passport. This is set out at Article 2(e) of the Federal Law 10 of 1975, which amends the Federal law 17 of 1972. The law states that a child will be deemed abandoned in the UAE unless proved otherwise.

Under Sharia law, it is encouraged for parents to care for a child that is not their biological child, and nurture that child as if he was their own. However it is prohibited for those parents to give the child their own surname. The Federal laws of the UAE (based on Sharia laws) circumvent this issue by allowing the adoptive parents to nominate the child’s first name, whereas the Court would order the child’s surname. In practice the children being adopted within the UAE are always abandoned, therefore their true identity at the time of adoption is not known. It is therefore possible for the Court to nominate the child’s new surname, making it the same as the adoptive father’s.

Service of family proceedings in Dubai and the UAE

Service of family proceedings in Dubai and the United Arab Emirates

Rule 6.43 of the Family Procedure Rules 2010 requires that service of court papers abroad must take place: 

• In accordance with the Service Regulation (Regulation (EC) No 1393/2007); or
• Through foreign governments, judicial authorities and British Consular authorities; or
• In accordance with the laws of Dubai in relation to service.

Service in accordance with the Service Regulation is not possible on another party in Dubai or elsewhere in the United Arab Emirates as they are not member states of the European Union.

Service through the UK Foreign Office is complicated and involves many delays. As at April 2012 the relevant section of the High Court in London was quoting upwards of 8 months to effect service.

The third option is to serve in accordance with the laws in Dubai. All issued Court proceedings in Dubai are served directly by the Court staff or Court notaries. Guidance is given at Articles 1 to 10 of the Federal Law No 11 for the year 1992. These articles set out how service (announcement) takes place through the Dubai Courts. Although the laws do not specify how foreign proceedings should be served, they helpfully elaborate on permitted methods of service in Dubai.  

It is clear from these laws that documents are deemed effectively served as long as they have been delivered to the Respondent after 7am and before 6pm (Article 6) and not on official vacation days (Fridays or public holidays). Article 8 sets out how service can take place if the Respondent cannot be found. Although service of court documents in Dubai is carried out by the Courts, it appears from these statutory provisions that service is effective as long as the Respondent has notice of the proceedings. It therefore appears that personal service of English divorce proceedings, would be service in accordance with the laws in Dubai subject to due compliance with articles 6 to 8 of the Federal Law 11 of 1992. Personal service of court documents can, and often does, take place in Dubai by courier delivery.

Another option is to request the Dubai Court Notaries to serve English Court documents on a Respondent in Dubai. The Court Notaries have their own section on the Dubai Court website (www.dubaiCourts.gove.ae). The Dubai Court Notaries are however likely to insist that all documents are translated into Arabic and this can add considerably to the legal costs.

We have had success in obtaining an English court order permitting due service of English divorce papers on a party in Dubai by methods compliant with local Dubai law.

Alexandra Tribe on Dubai Eye 103.8

Alexandra Tribe on Dubai Eye 103.8 with Desley Humphrey advises on intercultural marriages in the UAE and the Islamic World

http://dubaieye1038.com/page/The_Emirati_Connection_10.04.2012/13281?feed=

Expat divorce a tricky affair

Alexandra Tribe talks to Gillian Duncan of the National newspaper about the division of assets on divorce during UAE and English divorces. Click here to read the full article.

Alexandra Tribe advises Emirates 24/7 on the most common reasons for marriage breakdown in the region

Financial instability resulting from the global economic downturn has resulted in an unlikely causality - marriage.

There has been a significant increase in the number of couples in the UAE seeking divorce, and lawyers are blaming it on money, investments, stress and family life.

According to a British lawyer operating from Dubai, her client list has grown by almost 40 per cent this January compared to the same period last year and, “majority of them have cited added burden of debt and growing economic pressure", said Alexandra Tribe, Solicitor (England and Wales) and a Resolution Accredited Specialist (International Family Law and Advanced Financial Provision).

Read more.

An amicable divorce? Yes, it is possible!

They say that divorce is one of the most stressful times of a persons life; it should not be like this. Developments in the English legal system have largely made disputed and acrimonious divorces a thing of the past. Divorces through the English courts are often described in the press as a 'quickie' divorces as they usually take place without husband and wife even attending. This is even the case for British expats living abroad.

The advent of mediation, collaborative law, arbitration, private hearings and other modes of dispute resolution have helped tremendously to ensure that cases are kept out of the courts, and separating couples are being given the push to resolve disputes surrounding their finances or children swiftly and amicably. In our present economic environment, this is a necessity, as couples can simply not afford to waste their well earned savings on acrimonious legal battles.

Click here to read Alexandra Tribe being interviewed by Gemma Carey of the National Newspaper on 'how to keep a divorce amicable'.

Relocating with a child

When a relationship breaks down, a husband or wife may often feel that they wish to start afresh by relocating to another country. This impacts on both parents when children are involved. What happens when one parent wants to prevent the other from leaving with the child?

In a recent case heard in the UK Court of Appeal, a Canadian mother of children aged four and two wished to return home to Canada after the breakdown of her marriage in England. The couple had been separated for about seven months at the time of the initial hearing. The mother, who was feeling lonely and isolated in England, applied to return to her native Canada with her two daughters and a judge ruled that she could return. In a landmark decision, the Court of Appeal ruled that the mother could not relocate with the children to Canada, despite it being her native country, because of the involvement that the childrens' father had in their lives.

This decision no doubt impact on the vast number of prospective expatriates hoping to relocate to Dubai and other countries. Read more here.....