Dubai court orders father-son duo to return AED15.1m in stolen jewellery, plus AED1m to wife

The Dubai Civil Court of First Instance ruled that a husband and his son must jointly return to the man's former wife AED15.1 million, representing the value of jewellery, watches and cash they were convicted of stealing. The court also ordered them to pay AED1 million in compensation for the material and moral damages she suffered, bringing the total award to AED16.1 million. The case stemmed from marital disputes between the plaintiff and her husband. She alleged that her husband and his son stole jewellery from her home, including more than 100 gold and diamond pieces valued at about AED15 million, as well as wristwatches and cash. The total value of the stolen items was estimated at AED15.1 million. The plaintiff stated in her lawsuit that the incident caused her material and moral damages. She said the rise in gold prices since the theft had increased the actual value of the jewellery by at least 70%, depriving her of the opportunity to benefit from the price increase. She estimated her lost profit at about AED11 million. She also sought compensation for the moral and psychological harm she said she suffered after her property was stolen by her husband and son, from whom she had expected support and assistance. She valued this claim at about AED23.9 million. Accordingly, she filed a civil lawsuit seeking AED50 million in compensation for material and moral damages, in addition to legal interest, fees, expenses and legal costs. She noted that the matter had already been addressed in criminal court, where the two defendants were initially sentenced to one year in prison and jointly fined AED15.1 million, equal to the value of the stolen property. The ruling was upheld by the Court of Appeal. Based on that ruling, the wife filed her civil lawsuit seeking repayment of the value of the stolen property, as well as additional compensation for the damages she suffered as a result of the incident. The court said liability for a harmful act is based on three elements: the occurrence of the act, proof of the damage and a causal link between the two. It noted that a final criminal judgment is binding on civil courts regarding the occurrence of the crime, its legal classification and its attribution to the perpetrator. The court added that the criminal judgment had established the defendants' involvement in stealing the plaintiff's property. As a result, fault had already been proven and could not be reconsidered by the civil court. The court's role was therefore limited to determining the civil consequences of the incident, including the assessment of damages and compensation. Regarding the claim for the value of the stolen property, the court said the criminal judgment had established that the stolen items, including jewellery, watches and cash, were worth AED15.1 million. It therefore ordered the defendants to pay that amount to the plaintiff. On the claim for additional compensation, the court said compensation for material damage requires proof of actual harm, whether already suffered or certain to occur in the future and capable of assessment. It added that the mere possibility of damage is not sufficient grounds for compensation. The court found that the incident had caused the plaintiff both material and moral harm. She had been deprived of the use and investment of her money for more than a year and a half, and had endured the burden of filing complaints and pursuing litigation to recover her property. The court also recognised the sense of distress she suffered as a result of the incident. It concluded that a causal relationship existed between the defendants' actions and the damages suffered by the plaintiff, and that all elements of tort liability had been established. The court awarded AED1 million in compensation and rejected any claims exceeding that amount.