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29 March 2024

Property dispute case referred back to Court of Appeal

Published
By Mohammed Al Sidafy

The Dubai Court of Cassation has referred a real estate dispute case back to the Court of Appeal and asked it to reconsider the defendant’s appeal on the ground of exceptional circumstances.

The Court has asked a fresh panel of judges to look into the case and keep in mind the fall of the real estate market and the losses made by the defendant while passing the judgment, so that there is a balance between the interests of both parties.

The case deals with a woman investor seeking a refund of her investment made in a real estate project, which didn’t materialise thanks to the fall of the real estate market.

The investor had filed a lawsuit against the company seeking the refund of Dh7.1 million she invested, on the ground that the defendant failed to implement any of its contractual obligations.

Explaining in the lawsuit the details of her deal with the defendant, she said “I bought from the company an area of ​​27,000 square feet in one of the towers the firm planned to build at Dh48.5 million, and paid a part of the value of the deal as an initial payment.

“However, due to the real estate crisis the company failed to carry out its commitments, hence, both the parties agreed to terminate the contract with the company requiring to refund the amount paid in addition to compensation.”

She added that the company had agreed to repay part of it on a mutually agreed date and did not keep the promise.

Following due deliberations, the Court of First Instance issued its verdict in favour of the investor and asked the company to pay out the claimed amount (Dh7.1 million) to the investor.

The company appealed in the Court of Appeal, which upheld the ruling, following which the defendant appealed the ruling before the Court of Cassation.

The Court of Cassation has referred the case back to the Court of Appeals, asking it to look into the case afresh with panel other than that handled the case previously.