Dubai court orders men to pay Dhs1 million in compensation to woman over abuse of litigation rights

Dubai Civil Court ordered men to pay jointly and severally Dhs1 million in compensation to a woman for the material and moral harms she sustained due to the abuse of litigation rights.

The court concluded that a series of claims as well as judicial and enforcement proceedings had exceeded the legitimate limits for exercising such a right.

The case dates back to financial disputes between the plaintiff and the defendants, which resulted in lawsuits and claims before the courts of several emirates, some of which were based on debt securities, declarations, cheques and minutes of conciliation.

The plaintiff pleaded that these documents did not reflect a real debt she owed and that she wrote some of them under threat and pressure.

The plaintiff explained that a series of disputes led to the initiation of enforcement measures against her, as a result of which her assets were seized, she was banned from travel and orders for her arrest and apprehension were issued, causing her both financial and moral harms and prompting her to seek Dhs20 million in compensation.

After hearing the lawsuit and reviewing the judgments rendered in prior disputes and the documents submitted by both parties, the court concluded that the defendants had abused litigation rights through claims, judicial proceedings and enforcement actions that exceeded the reasonable limits of exercising such a right, notwithstanding the existence of prior judgments addressing the grounds for those claims.

According to the court, the right to seek legal recourse is guaranteed to all and liability does not arise merely from filing a lawsuit or losing one but rather requires proof of an abuse of this right such as intent to harm others, pursuit of an unlawful interest or disproportion between the intended benefit and the resulting harm.

The court further concluded that the actions attributed to the defendants, despite their varied forms and the procedures associated with them, collectively contributed to causing harm to the plaintiff as manifested in both financial burdens and moral harms.

The court, however, did not support the claim for Dhs20 million in compensation and assessed the harms, to the extent proven, at Dhs1 million.

Accordingly, it ordered the defendants to pay this amount, holding them jointly and severally liable, with an annual legal interest of 5 per cent accruing from the date the judgment becomes final until full payment is made.

The court also obligated the defendants to cover the incurred fees, expenses and lawyer’s fees.