Divorced men said they faced demands for exaggerated marital expenses, or those classified as “luxury” expenses, that did not take into account their limited income, indicating that they did not represent the basic needs of the divorced woman or her children.
They stressed that divorced women resort to this type of claim in order to financially exhaust them, take revenge on them, and prevent them from marrying other wives, pointing out that they are asked to pay telephone bills, traffic violations, register their children in expensive schools, and other things, calling for the establishment of legal frameworks that govern the acceptance of such claims in the courts.
Legal experts and family consultants confirmed the prevalence of this type of “unreasonable claims” in courtrooms, with the aim of “revenge” or “spite,” but the judiciary rejects them and decides what preserves a decent life for the divorced woman and her children, according to the means and income of the divorced man.
Al-Emarat Al-Youm monitored requests submitted by women in divorce cases before the courts, including obligating the divorced man to pay the deferred dowry, maintenance during the waiting period, maintenance for enjoyment, maintenance for housing during the waiting period, delayed spousal maintenance, maintenance for children, clothing for the two Eids, clothing for winter and summer, paying the nursery fee, providing a maid, a car, an independent residence for the nanny, the costs of private lessons, sewage expenses, fees for renewing the car’s ownership, and paying its traffic violations.
In detail, divorcees: Muhammad Hussein, Khaled Habash, and Saif Abu Al-Saud, indicated that their ex-wives believed that divorce would bring them alimony and money that would enable them to live a comfortable life, but the truth is that the divorced man pays the expenses of the divorce in a way that exceeds his ability to continue his life normally, especially if his salary is limited, or he has other financial obligations and expenses, such as having a second wife, bank loans, or accumulated bills.
They added that the law has determined the expenses of the divorced woman in a way that does not constitute a burden on the divorced man, but some lawyers work to add prohibitive or exaggerated expenses to the lawsuit, which leads to the divorced man bearing large financial burdens, if the court approves them.
They called for establishing legal frameworks for the alimony of the divorced woman and her children, so that they are specific and do not harm the divorced man financially, socially or psychologically, while at the same time preserving the rights of the divorced woman and her children.
They explained that they faced major problems in meeting the demands of their ex-wives, after they filed exaggerated lawsuits before the judicial authorities, which included expenses not included in the law, including vehicle registration expenses, vehicle insurance expenses, medical expenses, travel expenses abroad, tuition fees at expensive private schools, internet and mobile phone expenses, expenses for the second maid, and the custodian’s residence.
For its part, the Federal Supreme Court confirmed that the legislation in the country took into account the income of the person obligated to pay alimony, in compliance with what was stipulated by the wise Shari’a, while taking into account the living and economic situation before the divorce. If this situation changes between the date of the alimony’s entitlement and the date of the ruling, then what is relied upon is its estimation at the time of entitlement, not at the time of the ruling, with the necessity of taking into account moderation and balance.
It confirmed in the grounds of a number of alimony cases that it is permissible to increase or decrease alimony according to changing circumstances, provided that a year has passed since the imposition of alimony, except in exceptional circumstances.
She added that “the increase or decrease in alimony is calculated from the date of the legal claim, and there is no oversight over the court of subject matter as long as it based its judgment on valid and acceptable reasons, after taking into account the circumstances of both parties, whether easy or difficult, and the economic and social situation in time and place, and all related circumstances.”
She pointed out that “the constitution made the issue of expenses and their estimation in accordance with legal, social and economic controls, and according to custom, according to the husband’s or father’s ability, capacity and financial ability.”
Legal experts stressed that “divorced women resorting to raising the alimony ceiling through impossible requests that burden the divorced man’s budget is considered illegal exploitation,” as it “includes requests not stipulated in the Personal Status Law.”
They revealed the emergence of new requests, under the name of “winter and summer” expenses, which include expenses for winter and summer clothing for foster children, in addition to expenses for sewage, the Internet, private study classes, the phone bill, the maid’s salary, vehicle renewal, traffic violations, and others.
They added that the judiciary usually rejects illogical alimony requests that are not stipulated by Islamic law or the law, based on the texts set by the UAE legislator, and on the financial status of the divorced husband, which has contributed to amending many alimony requests and preventing them from harming the divorced husband.
The competent courts in the country rejected divorce and alimony lawsuits filed by women due to harm, because they were unable to prove that they had been harmed, and ruled that they must obey their husbands.
Lawyer and legal advisor Dr. Hamad Al-Dabani said that some divorced women exaggerate in their requests for alimony, especially if the divorced man is a sponsor for several commercial licenses. He pointed out that one of his clients had 12 licenses, and when his ex-wife filed a lawsuit for alimony against him, she revealed that he owned those licenses before the court, so she was awarded 20,000 dirhams in monthly alimony, even though he does not receive this amount monthly from his sponsorship of the licenses, which caused him a financial crisis.
He added, “The law gives the divorced woman the right to file a lawsuit to demand an increase in alimony annually, which burdens the divorced man financially, especially if the demands of the first lawsuit were exaggerated. In contrast, the divorced man has the right to file a lawsuit after one year has passed since the first lawsuit, to demand a reduction in the value of alimony, based on the developments in the lawsuit.”
He explained that “some people make the divorced woman believe that they can increase her list of demands and add new expenses to her, considering that this is her right, which makes the divorced man unable to marry another woman.”
He stated that additional requests for alimony are subject to consideration by the judiciary, and the ability of the divorced man and the court’s conviction of the harm suffered by the divorced woman are taken into account.
He added, “The divorced woman has the right to request the deferred dowry, child support, housing, a maid, and a car. This is a right guaranteed to her by law, but she does not have the right to force her ex-husband to pay the annual vehicle renewal fees, pay her traffic violations, bring in a second maid, or pay her phone bill.”
Lawyer and legal advisor, Ramzi Al-Ajouz, pointed out that “some divorced women use alimony as a means to exhaust their ex-partners, by exaggerating their demands, forgetting that these demands are the rights of the children and not theirs.”
Family affairs advisor Dr. Abdul Latif Al-Azizi said, “Behind some alimony demands and their consequences is a kind of spite and a desire to take revenge on the other party, as some women demand exaggerated alimony, with the aim of financially exhausting their ex-husbands and preventing them from marrying other women again.”
He pointed out that “some divorced women are following up on the increase in the salaries of their ex-husbands, in order to file new lawsuits if they get a salary increase, to increase their expenses.”
He added, “This type of behavior does not apply to all cases. There are divorced women who live with the minimum of their needs and do not ask for more, despite the large income of the divorced man and his ability to expand the living conditions for his divorced wife and children.”
Al-Azizi called for organizing lectures and workshops to reduce divorce cases, clarify the rights of both parties after divorce, and maintain a good and cooperative relationship between them, in order to protect the children and their future after the end of the marital relationship.
• “Supreme Federal Court”: “The calculation of alimony begins from the date of the legal claim.”
• Legal experts: “The unreasonable demands of divorced women are an illegal exploitation.”