Compensation sought for demolished house

Dubai: An Emirati is seeking Dh3.5 million in compensation from Dubai Municipality for demolishing his late mother's house, which was a royal grant, to build a commercial project.

The Emirati inherited the property after his mother's death in 2003, and when the municipality and Department of Lands and Properties reportedly informed him that he will not be compensated, he lodged a civil compensation claim before the Dubai Civil Court, Gulf News has learnt.

The claimant's lawyer said in the lawsuit that his client was shocked when one day the municipality's bulldozers razed the house to the ground for commercial reasons under the pretext of public interest.

"When the claimant went to verify the matter with the municipality and DLP, the officials told him that he won't get sufficient compensation like his neighbours, who had already received payments after their properties were demolished. According to Article 1135 of Civil Procedural Law, a property ownership shall not be confiscated except for fair and sufficient compensation under the provisions of the law. The same law also stipulates that no one's property or land shall be confiscated without legal reasoning," said the lawyer in the lawsuit.

According to court records, the mother obtained the property as a government donation from the late Shaikh Rashid Bin Saeed Al Maktoum when he was Dubai's ruler in 1971. In 1987 the Government of Dubai reconfirmed the mother's ownership of the property.

"My client is the sole successor and he inherited his mother's property in 2003. The Dubai Court of Cassation issued a landmark ruling in May 1999, in which it confirmed that anything issued by Dubai's ruler whether it be an order, instruction, decree or a decision should be applied as a law. We are seeking the same amount that the neighbours received as a compensation [Dh3.5 million]," added the lawyer.

The Dubai Civil Court will decide whether the DM should compensate the claimant or a private expert should asses the property's value soon.