Al Ain court orders grandmother to pay father Dh5,000 for keeping his children from him for eight months

Abu Dhabi: The Al Ain Court for Civil, Commercial and Administrative Cases ruled that a maternal grandmother must pay the father of her grandchildren Dh5,000 in compensation for the psychological and moral damages he suffered as a result of her preventing him from seeing his children for more than eight months, after she was criminally convicted of refusing to hand over the children in her custody to the person who has the right to request them.

In detail, a father filed a lawsuit against his children’s maternal grandmother, demanding that she pay him Dh50,000 in compensation for the moral and psychological damages he suffered due to being prevented from seeing his children for more than eight months, and obligating her to pay the fees and expenses. 

He pointed out that the defendant refused to hand over the children to the person who had the right to request them, and she was convicted of this act by a criminal ruling. The grandmother, the defendant, submitted a response memorandum to the lawsuit, requesting in conclusion that the lawsuit be dismissed and that the plaintiff be obligated to pay the fees and expenses.

For its part, the court explained in the reasoning of its ruling that it is established from reviewing the papers, documents and the copy of the criminal ruling that the grandmother, the defendant, was convicted of the act of refusing to hand over the children in custody to the person who has the right to request them. This unlawful act, on which the criminal case was filed, is the same act on which the father, the plaintiff, is based in his current civil case. 

Therefore, this ruling has made a necessary decision regarding the occurrence of the act that constitutes the common basis between the criminal and civil cases, and regarding the legal description of this act and its attribution to its perpetrator.

Regarding the claim for compensation, the court indicated that the defendant’s mistake was established by a final criminal ruling and resulted in harm to the plaintiff, represented by what he suffered in his reputation and caused him psychological and material pain as a result of what the defendant grandmother did. 

The causal relationship between the mistake and the harm was established, so the defendant is legally obligated to compensate him for that harm. The court ruled to obligate the defendant to pay the plaintiff compensation in the amount of Dh5,000, according to what was stated in the reasons, and with expenses, and to reject all other claims.