Al Ain court orders unlicensed recruitment office owner to repay AED 20,250

The Al Ain Court for Civil, Commercial and Administrative Cases ruled that the owner of an unlicensed domestic worker recruitment office must repay AED 16,250 to a man and pay AED 4,000 in compensation. The office owner had previously been convicted of operating a recruitment business without a licence, bringing the total amount awarded to AED 20,250. According to records, a man filed a lawsuit against the owner of an unlicensed domestic worker recruitment office, seeking repayment of AED 16,250, which he said was the outstanding amount owed to him. He also sought AED 10,000 in compensation for material and moral damages, in addition to fees and expenses. The plaintiff stated that he had agreed with the defendant to provide two domestic workers for AED 31,250 and paid the full amount. However, after their residency procedures were completed, one worker absconded and the other refused to work. When he requested a refund, the defendant allegedly refused. The plaintiff noted that the defendant had already been criminally convicted in connection with the matter. In response, the defendant submitted a memorandum requesting that the lawsuit be dismissed and that the plaintiff be ordered to pay the fees and expenses. He also submitted documents that included copies of receipts. The court stated in its ruling that the defendant had been criminally convicted of recruiting domestic workers without obtaining a licence from the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation. It noted that the criminal judgment established the common factual basis between the civil and criminal proceedings, as well as the legal characterisation of the act and its attribution to the defendant. The court pointed out that the criminal ruling confirmed that the plaintiff had paid the defendant AED 31,250. It noted that the plaintiff had limited his claim to the outstanding amount of AED 16,250 and that the defendant had failed to prove that this amount had been repaid. The court therefore found in favour of the plaintiff on this claim. Regarding compensation, the court found that the defendant’s fault had been established by the criminal judgment and had caused both material and moral harm. This included depriving the plaintiff of the benefit of his money and the psychological distress caused by the defendant’s actions. The court found a direct causal link between the fault and the damage and assessed compensation at AED 4,000. The court ruled that the defendant must pay the plaintiff AED 20,250, ordered him to pay the legal expenses, and rejected all other claims.