What is Personal Injury Settlement?

Often there are injuries caused to a person by reason of an accident. If you have been in an accident caused by a third party’s mistake or negligence, which has left you injured, you may file a lawsuit against such person. There is a chance that the person who has caused the accident agrees to pay compensation to the victim for settling the matter. Therefore, a personal injury settlement is a compensation amount which is given to the victim by the injuring party. Sometimes, this is paid even before the matter goes to court.

What laws could be applicable to the personal injury settlement in a divorce proceeding?

In the UAE, family disputes, which include matters related to custody, divorce, maintenance, etc. are governed and regulated by the Federal Law No 18 of 2005, called the UAE Personal Status Law. In addition to the UAE Personal Status Law, the Federal Law No 5 of 1985, called the Civil Transactions Law is also applicable to these matters.

In Abu Dhabi, a new law called the Abu Dhabi Law No 14 of 2021 has been issued regarding personal status matters in Abu Dhabi. It applies to non-Muslims based in Abu Dhabi but the UAE Personal Status Law continues to apply to Muslims in Abu Dhabi

What happens to the Personal Injury Settlement in a Divorce?

In a divorce proceeding, personal injury settlement would represent assets of a spouse and under the UAE Personal Status Law, generally the rule is that title controls the assets. This means that the person who owns the asset, which in this case, would be the sum of money obtained through the settlement, will be able to retain it during the divorce proceedings. The other spouse will not have a right to the settlement. Additionally, the wife under the UAE Personal Status Law may not be entitled to financial rights for herself, except the maintenance claim during the marriage and during the Iddah period, a waiting period after separation in which the wife cannot marry. She can also claim the deferred dowry payable upon divorce, reimbursement for backdated expenses up to 36 months, and maintenance for children in case she gets custody.

However, in Abu Dhabi, if the parties are non-Muslim, then the wife can request alimony or financial support from the husband once the divorce has been issued. The parties can agree on the conditions of the financial support and if there is no such agreement, then the judge can decide on the financial support to the wife on its own. However, the judge will take into account some factors, such as the years of marriage, age of the wife, economic status of the spouse, any material or moral damage resulting from the divorce, whether the wife takes care of the children, whether the wife has remarried, amongst others.

However, if the divorce proceedings are being conducted between two persons whose marriage was concluded in a foreign country, then under Article 13 of the Civil Transactions Law, they may apply the law of the country where the marriage was concluded to settle their financial matters. If such foreign law allows the division of the personal injury settlement, then such right could be claimed. However, it is important to note that the application of foreign laws is not absolute in financial or personal matters resulting from marriage. If a person has dual citizenship or was a UAE national at the time of marriage, then the foreign law will not apply and the UAE laws will become applicable.