No contract, no refund: Abu Dhabi court rejects man's Dh863,000 lawsuit against lawyer

The Abu Dhabi Civil Family Court has dismissed a lawsuit filed by a client against his lawyer, in which he sought the return of Dh700,000, claiming the lawyer had failed to finalise an agreement to represent him. The court ruled that the money transfer constituted only a “sent amount” and that there was no evidence of a binding contract between the two parties.

Court records show that the client had filed a civil case demanding the repayment of Dh700,000 allegedly paid without justification. He also sought 9 per cent interest from the date of payment until the filing of the case, totalling Dh63,000, as well as Dh100,000 in compensation for what he described as material and moral damages. The overall claim thus amounted to Dh863,000.

The client said he had agreed with the lawyer that the latter would represent him in legal proceedings for a fee of Dh700,000. However, according to the lawsuit, the lawyer failed to complete the agreement or sign a contract and did not return the money he had received.

In its reasoning, the court said the claim relied on the assumption that the amount transferred was part of an agreed legal fee. It added that the transfer of money between two people does not, by itself, prove a contractual relationship, and that it was the claimant’s duty to provide evidence of such an agreement.

Consequently, the court rejected the lawsuit and ruled that there was no obligation for the lawyer to return the amount.