On November 7, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the United Arab Emirates and Ruler of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, enacted legislation to regulate non-Muslims’ status in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi. The new family law results from a series of changes made in Abu Dhabi to modernize and restructure the legal system while also protecting the rights of non-Muslims and guaranteeing that their legal problems are not subject to Sharia law.
The legislation was extensively researched and analyzed to provide a legislative solution that provides a current judicial framework for foreigners resident in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi to resolve family conflicts following worldwide best practices.
The law was created to give non-Muslims a flexible and advanced judicial framework for resolving personal status disputes. The AD Judicial Department has created the first court for non-Muslim family cases. The new court’s proceedings will be multilingual, i.e. in Arabic and English, to assist foreigners’ comprehension of judicial operations and to promote judicial transparency.
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The new legislation comprises 20 articles grouped into chapters that address civil marriage, divorce, joint custody of children, and inheritance.
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Under the new rule, couples have the right to divorce without establishing that the marriage caused them harm.
After a divorce, parents will be allowed joint and equal custody of their children, with processes in place to resolve disagreements.
Changes to non-Muslim inheritance rules in Abu Dhabi imply that if a person dies without a will, half of their fortune will automatically go to their spouse, with the other half going to their children.
A specialized court for non-Muslim family problems has also been established.
All court proceedings will be conducted in Arabic and English to ensure that foreigners understand the court’s operations and increase judicial transparency.
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The purpose of this article is to provide an overview of the subject. This article was produced with great care to ensure correctness. Because individual circumstances may vary, it is not meant to give legal advice or predict a specific conclusion. Readers considering legal action should seek legal advice from an experienced attorney like HHS Lawyers in Dubai to learn about current laws and how they may apply to their case.
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