Dubai Court orders brothers to repay Dh57,000 loan based on WhatsApp evidence

Dubai’s Court of First Instance has ordered two brothers to jointly repay Dh57,000 to an Arab friend, along with legal interest of five per cent from the date of formal demand until full settlement, and to bear all court costs, after establishing the existence of a financial loan between the parties.

According to court records, the claimant had lent the brothers Dh57,000 at the request of one of them, within the context of a personal friendship, on the understanding that the amount would be repaid within a short period. The money was handed over in cash to one of the brothers.

After repeated failure to repay the loan, the plaintiff initiated legal proceedings, relying on WhatsApp messages exchanged between the parties that included explicit demands for repayment, as well as a subsequent telephone acknowledgement made before two witnesses, during which the brothers admitted the debt and pledged to repay it, Al Khaleej Arabic daily reported.

During the hearing, one brother denied the debt and argued that it could not be proven by witness testimony as the amount exceeded the legal threshold. He also claimed the electronic messages were merely exchanged in jest. The claimant, however, maintained that the messages constituted written evidence under the law, supported by notarised acknowledgements.

The court ruled that the electronic correspondence amounted to prima facie written proof, particularly as its authenticity was not denied, and found that its content could not reasonably be described as joking. After administering a supplementary oath to the claimant, which he swore in the legally prescribed form, the court was satisfied that the debt had been proven.

The court concluded that the loan had benefited both brothers and that their joint use of the funds established their joint liability, applying the legal principle that prohibits unjust enrichment by retaining money without lawful justification.