Abu Dhabi's new secular family law steps up Gulf competition

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, November 12 ------ Legal reforms in Abu Dhabi designed to enhance the emirate's appeal to foreigners will allow for non-Muslim judges, birth certificates for children of unmarried parents, equality of men and women as witnesses, and new alimony and inheritance laws. The new secular law, a copy of which was seen by Reuters, intends to make the political capital of the United Arab Emirates more attractive for outsiders to live and work. It has been welcomed as a step forward for gender equality.

"It gives a lot of rights to women which did not exist before," said Hassan Elhais, a legal consultant from UAE-based Al Rowaad Advocates. "It is revolutionary," The UAE's tourism and business hub Dubai - usually more avantgarde than Abu Dhabi - could follow suit and craft its own family laws too. That would help the UAE keep a competitive edge in luring investment as conservative Gulf neighbor Saudi Arabia opens itself up to bring in foreign money and talent. Foreigners, mostly from South Asia, Egypt and the Philippines, account for about 88% of the UAE's nearly 10 million population, fuelling all aspects of the economy from executive positions to low-paid construction and domestic workers.

The Family Law for Non-Muslim Expatriates in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, announced on Sunday and expected to come into force in December, allows for "personal status" procedures - such as divorce, inheritance and marriage - to take place for the first time in the country outside of religious codes. It also allows non-Muslim judges to preside over family issues for the first time anywhere in the Gulf. It introduces the concepts of civil marriage, no-fault divorce and joint child custody. And, also for the first time in the UAE, it allows babies born to unmarried foreign parents to obtain birth certificates if the father recognizes paternity.

Source: gmanetwork.com