In 2023, I sold an apartment I owned in Dubai through a local estate agent. As I did not have a UAE bank account, I naively agreed to grant him Power of Attorney in respect of the sale and to receive the proceeds on my behalf for onward remittance into my bank in the United Kingdom.
The property was duly sold but, to my dismay, the proceeds were never transferred into my bank account. In desperation, I contacted James Berry & Associates in Dubai and was put in touch with the Head of litigation, Nichola Reece-Burton. She very promptly and efficiently undertook a thorough investigation of what happened, including a visit to the relevant Government departments. Taking quick decisive action and, with the assistance of Advocate Michel Chalhoub of International Counsels Advocates & Legal Consultants, a fraud claim was filed against the Estate Agent ( grantee) for breach of trust under the POA. By filing a criminal claim for fraud rather than a civil claim, the Dubai police would investigate whether the grantee was still residing within Dubai, place an alert at the exit/entrance points to the Emirate and potentially institute a travel ban to prevent him from fleeing while the fraud claim was being determined by the Dubai courts.
As the grantee had British citizenship and that there was a high possibility that he no longer resided in Dubai, there was a low probability of ever getting anything back. However, more than 6 months later, to my amazement, I received notification that the grantee had been arrested at the Dubai airport and a travel restriction placed on him pending the outcome of the criminal hearing. The grantee was more than willing to “settle out of court” and, in less than two weeks, the full amount of the sales transaction was repaid!
I cannot thank Nichola, who led the whole process, Michel and their teams enough for their support, encouragement and professional advice and the urgent action taken both on initiating the fraud claim and recovering the monies. I could not have wished for a better legal team anywhere in the world! Fantastic!
One very happy and satisfied client.
Patrick Bailey