A bounced cheque is considered a crime in UAE and as per new rules instead of jail term there will be fines issued considering bounced cheque as a misdemeanor on the following basis,

– There is no date mentioned
– It is not signed by the drawer
– Does not clearly state the word “cheque”
– Does not specify the amount issued
– If it does not mention drawer and the beneficiary name

The new rule states that a bounced cheque of upto 50,000 will be given a fine of aed 2,000, for cheque between 50,000 to 100,000 will be given a fine of aed 5,000 and lastly for cheque between 100,000 to 200,000 will be given aed 10,000 fine.

A postdated cheque is not considered a crime. However, the cheque will be invalid if the date is not incorporated on the cheque or it contains fake duplicate signature or any sort of mark.

Please note that a bounced cheque crime may not be intentional but still the offence takes place once the cheque has been presented

1- The law governing the extradition process is under Federal law No. 39 (2006) which is about International Judicial Cooperation in Criminal matters
2- Anyone residing in UAE can make an extradition request against the accused or the person who has committed a crime.
3- To process the request of extradition, a treaty has to be signed between UAE and the country of extradition and the provisions of such treaties may include additional requirements
4- For the extradition to be considered in the UAE, the offence should also be considered a crime in the country of the accused.
5- If the offence of the accused relates to execution of custody, then the custody should be no less than six months for extradition
6- Interpol is the body through which a request can be made against the accused.
7- The severity of the crime will decide the type of notice to be issued. For serious offences and crime the red notice is given to the accused.
8- Notices issued by Interpol are official and has an international effect and the accused can be held under custody.
9- If the crime in the UAE is under a different name, description or has other components then the extradition country, it will not be considered the same

The power of attorney is to be prepared by the law firm and then sent for translation into Arabic and English.

In order for a lawyer to act on behalf a client, it is obligatory for the client to authorize the lawyer of doing so by signing a power of attorney. This will show that the lawyer acting on behalf of the client has full authority to represent the client in all legal matters. It needs to be stamped and attested by the Dubai courts.

The power of attorney will be revoked once it completes its time frame or at the death of the person giving the power or even at the will of the executor by written application, however this is only possible in Abu Dhabi and Sharjah

To use power of attorney made somewhere other than UAE, the following must be done,

a- Translate documents into Arabic
b- Attestation by the foreign office in UAE
c- Legalize documents by UAE Ministry of Justice
d- Signing power of attorney in front of notary in the country of issue
e- Attestation by the foreign office in country of issue
f- Legalize documents by UAE Embassy in country of issue

There is a fair possibility of the bail given to the client be revoked as per article 115 of criminal procedures law under the following circumstances which are:

1. If the accused has been absent to a hearing in court, in which case there is a breach of order which can lead to cancellation of the bail.

2. The person giving surety for the bail of the accused may be revoked if that person withdraws

For these two above mentioned reasons, it is necessary to seek help from a lawyer from the beginning till the end to help you bail out, to understand and not be in contradiction of the laws intentionally or unintentionally.

Furthermore to revoke the bail an application can be submitted explaining the incident of the case.

Please note as per article 117 of the UAE law the victim of the crime cannot request imprisonment for the accused or involve in any discussion in regards to bail

Bail is the procedure of giving temporary release to the person accused of the crime on deposit of some guarantee to the court.

The UAE bail procedure is the same as everywhere with no change in definition and has the same importance for the clients that is to get their members out on bail as soon as possible.

For being charged with minor crime public prosecution has the right to release the accused on bail but for serious crimes like murder or robbery where verdict is a death penalty or jail sentence for life then only bail or release is not applicable as per article 111 of UAE criminal procedures law.

The temporary release of the accused on bail requires that he or she provides some guarantee to confirm their appearance in the court proceedings. The guarantee may involve retaining the passport of the accused or their family members and friends. Furthermore money can also be deposited in the courts as a guarantee or a solvent person can be the guarantee as well for a certain amount to be paid if the accused violates the bail provisions.

The violation of bail provisions can lead to takeover of the guarantee by the government before the final verdict, similarly if the case has ended; the guarantee given by the accused will be returned in full and also will be released from any undertaking.

Arbitration is an alternate dispute resolution whereby the parties recourse to a private court with nominated judges known as arbitrators.

It is widely used all over the world for resolving international disputes such as franchise due to their nature being neutral and unbiased.

The basis of its neutrality is all dependent on the selection of the arbitrator which is done so with the consent of both parties. It is flexible too with time, place and procedures even in some cases giving judgment on the basis of documents alone without summoning parties or their lawyers.

The court proceedings carried out by state courts are public whereas in arbitration there is privacy and confidentiality.

Furthermore verification of enforcement of the court judgments or the arbitral award is of prime importance prior to dispute resolution due to the fact that court judgment is not recognized in some countries where as arbitral award under New York convention is recognized and can be enforced internationally within 156 countries of New York convention.

The clauses under arbitration are to be enforced as written to avoid waste of money and time of both the parties.

Litigation is the proceedings in the local courts to defend or enforce the legal rights with help of an attorney.

The dispute will go in the hands of the litigation or arbitration after direct negotiation and mediation failure. However to proceed with arbitration the parties must have agreed to arbitration proceedings in the contract if not then the local courts or litigation is the option to resolve their dispute.

There can be an exception if both parties commit to proceed with arbitration even if not mentioned in the contract can do so but to be precise it is impossible because of damaged goodwill.

For international disputes such as franchise, both parties don’t prefer the litigation method as it might be biased in their proceedings. The local court proceedings favor one party in different ways such as language, procedures, and the advocates.

In litigation, the stronger party is, of course, the locals which is why most parties don’t agree with the litigation method and end up with arbitration for their disputes.

Mediation has become a popular method in resolving international business disputes which includes franchise dispute and many more.

Mediator is a third party who will get involved once direct negotiation fails in resolving a franchise dispute. The failure will cost both parties as appointing a third party comes at a price.

The job of the mediator will be to assist the parties in reaching a settlement without making any decision instead helping them understand each other’s point of view.

The mediator will summon both parties and listen to their arguments and the case itself furthermore if required will summon each party alone as well.

Their role will include working on sorting out the disputed case areas and areas where they can compromise and agree. The stronger party has of course more chances of winning as compared to weaker party but that can hurt the good will and cost money and time if not settled earliest.

Franchise is the extension of a business which is distribution of goods and services in countries with their name and license.

Disagreements happen at some point in time in any relationship but what will happen next? Will it get resolved or become worst.

Like any other dispute franchise dispute is also due to the disagreement between franchisee and franchisor which if not resolved can lead to a costly path.

Franchise dispute may happen if the franchisee disagrees with high price for the products and services or the new product line or lacks adequate support or is too controlling.

The easy and economical solution or the way out is that both parties discuss the issues and try to resolve prior to getting third party involved.

If third party gets involved so do emotions and money! The best way to go about it is to be open and making some compromises. Goodwill of the parties is likely to lead to a fair settlement.

It should not be about who wins or who losses in a dispute when it arises instead it should be about understanding each other’s concerns and compromising on equal terms.

Any dispute that arises between the employer and the employee shall be dealt by,

A complaint is filed either by the employer or the employee in the labor department as per Article 6 of labor law which will then summon both parties and settle the dispute. In case the dispute does not get resolved it is then referred to the courts within two weeks of submission of complaint.

The labor court has two circuits which is

a- Minor Circuit
The cases which are worth less than one hundred thousand dirhams (AED100, 000) are dealt by one judge including counter cases regardless of their value

b- Major Circuit
The cases which value exceeds one hundred thousand dirhams (AED 100, 000) are dealt by three judges led by one judge including counter cases regardless of their value

There is a time limitation of one year to initiate an employment case. No complaint from both parties will be eligible for a claim if brought after a year or if they did not follow the procedures.

The court holds a meeting within three days of complaint in which they review and consider the claim from both parties. Furthermore, they might summon a representative of the labor department to investigate more and a notice is sent to both parties