Abu Dhabi court orders parent to pay Dh197,680 in unpaid school fees after bounced cheque case

Abu Dhabi: The Abu Dhabi Commercial Court of First Instance ruled that a parent must pay Dh197,680 to a private school, representing outstanding tuition fees for the registration of his children. It also ordered a woman, jointly with him, to pay Dh142,800, representing the value of a check drawn from her account that could not be encashed, and ordered them both to pay Dh3,000 in compensation to the school for the damages it incurred. In detail, a private school filed a lawsuit against a parent and a woman, demanding that the former pay it Dh197,680, and that the defendant, jointly with him, pay it Dh142,800, and Dh15,000 as compensation for the crime of submitting a check written in a way that prevents its payment. Further, it obligated them to pay the fees, expenses and costs, indicating that the defendant had registered his children in the school, and had not paid the amount due, in addition to giving the school a check for part of the required amount, issued from the defendant’s account, which turned out to be written in a way that prevents its payment. Submitted in support of the claim were copies of the bank statement and invoices, a copy of the check and proof of its return, and a copy of a criminal judgment. The defendant submitted a memorandum in which she insisted that the lawsuit should not be accepted because it was filed against someone without standing. For its part, the court stated that it is established from the documents that the defendant contracted with the plaintiff to register his children for study, but he did not pay the fees due. The plaintiff proved the origin of the obligation, while the defendant appeared in person and did not defend the case or take from it or from the entitlement to what was recorded in his debt, which proves his breach of his obligations and failure to pay the amount due. Regarding the defendant’s responsibility, the court indicated that it was proven that she had issued a cheque from her account to the plaintiff and refused to pay, as it was issued in a way that prevented it from being encashed. Therefore, it is necessary to rule that the defendants be jointly liable up to the value of the cheque, especially since the defendant appeared in the case and did not provide evidence of her innocence of the amount or that it was paid. The court ruled to reject the defendant's plea of inadmissibility of the lawsuit, on the grounds that it was filed against an ineligible party. The court ruled that the first defendant must pay the plaintiff Dh197,680, and that the defendant jointly with him must pay Dh142,800, and that they jointly must pay Dh3,000 in compensation, and the expenses, and Dh200 for attorney fees, and rejected all other claims.