JUMA AL NUAIMI (ABU DHABI)
The Abu Dhabi Family, Civil, and Administrative Court ruled in a dispute between a property owner and a tenant holding surface rights.
The conflict arose when the tenant, who had leased the property for a year under a legally notarised contract, subleased it without the owner's consent, consequently reducing the rental income. The property owner, the surface rights holder, sought legal recourse to recover Dh238,000 for the period the property remained unreturned, in addition to Dh300,000 for unauthorised rent reduction, lost profits, and damages, plus fees, expenses, and attorney's fees.
The court's decision, aided by an expert report, found that the tenant had collected rent from subtenants from May 20, 2022, to January 31, 2023, totalling Dh176,000, without any evidence of clearance or property handover. Dismissing the tenant's defence of a prior adjudication under Ruling No. 45/2022, the court found the current case to be distinct, rendering the tenant's argument as invalid.
The court awarded Dh30,000 in compensation for all damages incurred, pursuant to Article (133)/1, 2 of the Civil Procedures Law. The court also dismissed the additional compensation claim related to rent reduction due to lack of evidence.
The court rejected the tenant's appeal and upheld the property owner's claim, ordering the tenant to compensate the owner a total of Dh206,000.