Abu Dhabi court rejects lawyer's appeal for higher Dh100,000 fee

Abu Dhabi: The Abu Dhabi court of appeal has upheld a lower court ruling that capped a lawyer’s fees at Dh10,000, rejecting his attempt to increase the amount by ten times under the terms of a disputed fee agreement.

The case began when the lawyer filed a petition challenging an earlier decision that awarded him Dh10,000 in compensation for his work on a civil and commercial case. 

He argued that the court had erred by ignoring a written fee agreement with his client that entitled him to 10 percent of the value of each claim handled.

But the Court of Appeal sided with the lower court, which had based its ruling on the level of effort the lawyer expended and the benefit his clients received. 

The court cited Law No. 23 of 1991 regulating the legal profession, which requires that fees be assessed fairly in proportion to the services rendered.

In its judgment, the court noted that the agreement signed between the lawyer and his client, granting him a percentage of the disputed amount, was inconsistent with Article 31 of the law governing the profession, which bars contingency-style fee arrangements. 

The appellate judges concluded that the original ruling was sound, legally consistent, and supported by the case file.

The appeal was therefore dismissed, with the original decision affirmed and the lawyer ordered to bear the costs of the case.