Renting out an apartment

I bought an apartment in November 2012, but the flat was already rented out to a tenant when I purchased it. After change of ownership, the tenant issued fresh rental cheques for the remaining period in my name. Now, the rental cheque of the tenant for the second quarter has bounced and I have opened a case against the tenant, who has since disappeared after locking the flat. What other legal recourse can I take to evict the tenant?

Each emirate has its own local laws relating to disputes between tenants and owners of real estate property. Since the emirate where the apartment is located is not mentioned and for the purpose of addressing this query let us assume it is located in Dubai.

You may obtain an order for eviction and handover of possession of the apartment from the rental dispute resolution committee established in Dubai in accordance with: (i) Article 25 (1) (a) of Law No. 26 of 2007 Regulating Relationship between Landlords and Tenants in the Emirate of Dubai and the amendment Law No. 33 of 2008 of Law No. 26 of 2007 Regulating Relationship between Landlords and Tenants in the Emirate of Dubai which states: “Landlords may demand eviction of the tenant prior to expiry of the tenancy period if the tenant fails to pay rent value, or part thereof, within thirty (30) days of the landlord’s notification for payment; unless parties agree otherwise.”; (ii) Article 25 (1) (h) of the aforementioned law which states: “Landlord may demand eviction of the tenant prior to expiry of the tenancy period if the tenant fails to observe legal obligations or tenancy contract conditions within 30 days from the date of notification by the landlord to abide by such obligations or conditions.” And (iii) Article 35 of Law No. 26 of 2007 regulating Landlords and Tenants in emirate of Dubai states: “Eviction decisions are to be executed through the committee in accordance with relative rules and procedures. Other decisions taken by the committee shall be executed by the Dubai Courts Execution Section.”

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Receiving blank cheque is gross violation by bank

My brother has been wrongly accused of non-payment of a loan even though he has paid in full and the bank has forwarded the cheque. His name is now listed in the list of defaulters. Can he sue the bank for damages?

Has your brother issued a cheque to the bank with or without stating any amount on the cheque? In the event the bank obtained a cheque without mentioning an amount, the bank has grossly violated Article 15(b) of the Central Bank Regulation No. 29/2011 regarding Bank Loans & Services to Individual Customers which states: “Banks and finance companies are prohibited from taking blank cheques for granting loans or overdraft facilities, or for issuing credit cards.”

If there is sufficient documentary evidence to prove the payment against the cheque issued to the bank was indeed against the full settlement of the loan, your brother may claim damages from the bank in accordance with Federal Law No.5 of 1985 regarding Civil Transactions law and in accordance with Article 93 of the Federal Law No. 18 of 1993 regarding Commercial Transactions Law which states: “The bond of debt in possession of the debtor shall be considered an evidence of his discharge from the debt until a proof to the contrary has been established.”

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Maternity leave

My wife has been working in a marketing company for 2.5 years. She is now pregnant. I want to know if she is eligible for maternity leave, and for how many months?

Your wife shall be entitled for maternity leave in accordance with the provisions of Article 30 of the Federal Law No. 8 of 1980 regarding regulation of labour which states: “A female worker shall be entitled to maternity leave with full pay for a period of 45 days, including the period preceding and the period following her confinement, on condition that she has been in her employer’s service for a continuous period of not less than one year. If she has not completed the aforesaid period of service, she shall be entitled to maternity leave with half pay.

On the expiry of her maternity leave, a female worker may be absent from her work without pay for a maximum period of 100 consecutive or non-consecutive days if such absence is due to an illness preventing her from resuming her work and if the illness is confirmed by a medical certificate issued by the medical service specified by the competent health authority or if the latter authority confirms that the illness was caused by the women’s work or confinement.

The leave provided for in the preceding two paragraphs, shall not be deducted from other period of leave.”

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Notice period

I am a civil engineer working in a company for five and a half years. I resigned on January 23, and sent my resignation via email to my head of department and to the HR, giving them a month’s notice. My head of the department is now asking me to wait until July/August and then he will think. He replied to my resignation saying that the notice period is not accepted and resignation is rejected. I am even ready to a 3-month notice period. What should I do?

You are within your right to resign by issuing a 30 days notice period in accordance with Article 117 (1) of the Federal Law No. 8 of 1980 related to labour regulations which states: “Both the employer and the worker may terminate a contract of employment of unlimited duration for a valid reason at any time following its conclusion by giving the other party notice in writing at least 30 days before the termination.”

In the event the employment contract of the questioner is for a limited period, the notice period may vary between 30 days to 90 days depending on what is the notice period stipulated in the employment contract. Whether the employment contract is for a limited or unlimited duration, the employer may not reject the resignation unilaterally and is obliged to accept the resignation.

The questioner may file a complaint against the employer with the Ministry of Labour.

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Ashish Mehta, LLB, F.I.C.A., M.C.I.T., M.C.I.Arb., is the founder and Managing Partner of Ashish Mehta & Associates, a legal consultancy firm in Dubai. He also practises in India, United Kingdom and Singapore. He has worked with international and commercial legal procedures, providing analysis and counselling on complex legal documents and policies such as commercial transactions, securitisation, real estate acquisitions, financial restructuring for distressed assets, mergers and acquisitions, arbitration and litigation issues. Readers may e-mail their questions to: news@khaleejtimes.com or send them to Legal View, Khaleej Times, PO Box 11243, Dubai.