Choosing a Lawyer in Dubai for Civil Aviation Matters

An aviation problem may begin with damaged cargo, a grounded aircraft or a contract that cannot be performed without further approval. Commercial pressure can make it tempting to treat every issue as a straightforward compensation claim. A legal assessment first identifies the activity, the responsible parties and the rules governing the particular loss or transaction.

A lawyer in Dubai handling civil aviation matters should connect the regulatory position with the evidence and the remedy sought. Passengers, aircraft owners, operators and service providers need different advice. The practical priorities are protecting time sensitive rights and resolving the approvals and contractual questions affecting the matter.

Dubai Airports reported that Dubai International handled 95.2 million guests in 2025, up 3.1% year on year, alongside 454,800 flight movements. These traffic figures describe the scale of aviation activity; they are not a count of passenger claims or a basis for calculating compensation.

Identify the issue before choosing the legal route

Start with a short factual record. For a passenger or cargo claim, identify the itinerary, operating carrier, booking arrangements and event causing the loss. For a business dispute, identify the aircraft, its location, the contracting entities, their responsibilities and the documents governing performance.

Keep separate the questions of regulatory compliance, contractual liability and insurance recovery. A regulator may investigate an operational breach without deciding how much one business owes another. Equally, an insurer’s decision does not necessarily determine the contractual dispute.

Federal Law No. 20 of 1991 provides the Civil Aviation Act. Its current Article 19 recognises relevant international aviation conventions and gives them priority where their provisions conflict with the Act. Treaty analysis therefore belongs at the beginning of the review.

Preserve evidence and urgent complaint rights

For passengers, retain the ticket, boarding passes, baggage tags, receipts and written exchanges with the carrier. Photograph damage and preserve the damaged item where practical. For cargo, obtain the air waybill, delivery record, packing information, commercial invoice and survey evidence.

Where the Montreal Convention applies, Article 31 requires written complaints about damage promptly upon discovery, with outer periods of seven days after receipt for checked baggage and fourteen days for cargo. Delay complaints concerning baggage or cargo must generally be made within twenty one days after the items become available. Failure to complain in time can bar proceedings, subject to the Convention’s fraud exception.

These notice requirements are separate from Article 35, under which damages rights are extinguished unless proceedings are brought within two years, measured from the relevant arrival, expected arrival or cessation of carriage date. The court’s law governs calculation. Do not assume negotiations preserve this period.

Assess a carriage claim before quoting compensation figures

The UAE is a party to the Montreal Convention, but its application must be checked against the carriage involved. Identify whether the complaint concerns injury, delay, baggage or cargo and distinguish the contracting carrier from the carrier that performed the flight.

ICAO’s revised figures effective from 28 December 2024 include 6,303 Special Drawing Rights for passenger delay, 1,519 SDRs per passenger for baggage and 26 SDRs per kilogram for cargo. These figures operate within the Convention’s conditions and exceptions; they are not automatic payments.

For death or bodily injury, the revised 151,880 SDR figure relates to the first tier of liability. It should not be described as an overall ceiling on every injury claim. Evidence of the event, causation and recoverable damage remains essential.

An aviation lawyer in Dubai should explain which rules support each claimed amount. Keep an itemised account of actual expenditure and loss. An online calculator or another passenger’s settlement is not a substitute for assessing the relevant claim.

Check federal and Dubai approvals together

The General Civil Aviation Authority regulates federal aviation matters under its statutory framework. Businesses should also examine the Dubai Civil Aviation Authority requirements applicable to their activities. A commercial registration does not answer every aviation approval question.

Dubai Executive Council Resolution No. 15 of 2026 addresses operators and practitioners. Among its requirements, an operator must obtain the relevant GCAA licence and DCAA permit before operating aircraft to or from an airport in Dubai. Practitioners must obtain the applicable approvals and comply with their conditions throughout their validity.

Before committing to a launch date, record each required approval, the responsible applicant and any outstanding condition. Match the authorised activity to the actual service being sold. Changes to operational arrangements should be reviewed before assuming an existing approval covers the revised project.

Review aircraft transactions against the actual asset

Aircraft purchase, leasing and finance work requires precise identification of the aircraft and the rights being transferred. Article 28 of the Civil Aviation Act provides for the aircraft register, while Article 5 addresses consent for specified dealings involving aircraft on the national register. Relevant treaty provisions must also be considered.

The transaction documents should identify ownership, operational responsibility, delivery condition, maintenance records and required consents. Examine whether the agreed payment sequence matches the steps needed to deliver the aircraft and complete the required formalities.

For example, a buyer may be ready to pay while essential records remain with a maintenance provider. A closing checklist should explain who obtains those records, what condition they must satisfy and what happens if delivery is delayed. Resolving that point before signing can prevent an avoidable dispute.

A foreign governing law clause should be reviewed alongside registration, regulatory and enforcement requirements in the relevant countries. Ask how the agreement will work if the aircraft moves or a party fails to cooperate.

Make insurance review part of the transaction

The GCAA’s published insurance framework addresses aircraft operators within its scope, including cover concerning passengers, baggage, cargo and third parties. It also requires attention to current Montreal Convention figures and specifies how discrepancies with published insurance values are handled. Old certificates should therefore be checked against current requirements.

Commercial review should go further than the certificate’s expiry date. Identify the insured parties, aircraft, permitted operations, geographical scope, deductibles and relevant exclusions. Check whether the contract requires endorsements or protection for another party.

When a loss occurs, establish the policy notification requirements promptly. Keep the insurer’s notification separate from the complaint to the carrier or any regulatory report. One communication may not satisfy all three purposes.

Draft service agreements around likely interruptions

Maintenance, charter, ground handling and airport service agreements should explain what happens when performance is interrupted. Identify who supplies records, who approves additional work and how completion is demonstrated.

A maintenance dispute, for example, may involve disagreement over the original work scope, additional repairs and the cause of an extended grounding. Preserve the initial quotation, authorisations, technical findings and communications explaining changes. The financial claim should connect each cost to a specific obligation or event.

Before invoking termination or withholding payment, examine the contractual procedure and the practical consequences for access to the aircraft and records. Urgent commercial pressure does not remove the need for accurate notices and a legally sustainable position.

Treat drones and operational changes as approval questions

Federal Decree Law No. 26 of 2022 regulates civil use of unmanned aircraft and related activities. The GCAA identifies safety, airspace management and allocation of regulatory responsibilities among its purposes.

A drone project should describe the operator, purpose, location, equipment and intended data collection. Obtain current advice on the permissions for that activity and location. Registration of equipment should not be treated as confirmation that every proposed flight is permitted.

The same discipline helps with other operational changes. Check the effect of a new aircraft, service, location or contractor on the existing authorisations and contracts. Assign responsibility for identifying changes before the business implements them.

Prepare a useful first consultation

Provide the documents in a clear sequence, with a chronology and an explanation of the immediate objective. Distinguish a deadline imposed by a contract or law from a preferred commercial date. Identify where the aircraft, cargo, records and relevant parties can be found.

Ask the lawyer in Dubai which issues require technical evidence, what relief may be available and which forum can address the dispute. Agree the scope of work and costs, including any foreign legal or engineering assistance. The initial advice should identify concrete next steps and the information still needed.

About the author

Dr. Hassan Elhais is a Senior Legal Consultant at Amal Al Rashedi Lawyers and Legal Consultants in Dubai. He advises on UAE family, civil, commercial and criminal law matters.

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