Last Updated: October 1, 2026
Inheritance disputes between heirs in the UAE: when the family does not agree
Most inheritance disputes in the UAE end in a negotiated family settlement, not a judgment. The court route exists for the cases where settlement fails, and it is conducted through instructed UAE advocates. Whatever the dispute, no heir may lawfully dispose of an estate asset before the court has certified their share: the estate is administered first, and divided after.
Law stated as at September 2026. Scope: federal onshore law, with Dubai procedure where stated. Federal Decree-Law 25/2025 entered into force on 1 June 2026.
How these disputes actually start
Inheritance disputes rarely begin with a will contest. They begin with the interim: the weeks between a death and the court’s certificate, when one person has the passwords, the keys and the relationship with the bank, and the others have questions. Unequal information does more damage than bad intent. The heir in control often believes they are protecting the estate; the heirs outside it believe they are being excluded. Both may be right about their own conduct and wrong about the other’s.
The law’s answer to this interval is that nobody is entitled to dispose of anything until the estate has been administered and the shares certified.
What if my sibling is controlling everything?
An heir may not dispose of any asset of the estate, or collect a debt owed to it, before receiving the court’s certificate stating their share in the net estate. That applies to the sibling with the passwords as much as to anyone else.
What the law provides instead is administration. Under Article 1118, the deceased may have named an executor; under Article 1119, the court appoints one on any interested party’s application. The executor files an inventory within ninety days (Article 1130), collects what is owed, pays what is due, and delivers the remainder. Under Article 1123, the court may take preservation measures: ordering the deposit of cash in the court’s treasury, placing seals on assets, or entrusting an authority with management until the liquidation is completed.
The practical response to a sibling who is controlling everything is not a confrontation but an application: for appointment of an executor, for an inventory, and where the facts justify it, for preservation measures under Article 1123. In Dubai, applications go to the Probate Court (Decree 25/2023) through the Reporting Judge.
Two things worth saying to the heir in control. First, keeping records now, of every receipt and payment from the day of death, is the single best protection against the accusation that will otherwise come. Second, the informal arrangement most families reach (“you look after the accounts until the certificate”) is not a legal authority and does not survive the first disagreement; an executor’s appointment is.
Settlement first
The great majority of these disputes settle, and they should. A negotiated settlement can resolve almost everything a court could and several things a court cannot: who takes which asset rather than a share of each; whether the family home is kept and how the other heirs are compensated; how a company share is valued; how debts and expenses are reconciled; what happens to sentimental items; and how assets abroad are dealt with alongside UAE assets.
A settlement agreement should be in writing, signed by every heir (with a guardian for any minor, and court authorisation for any disposal of a minor’s share under Article 153), and drawn so it can be presented to the Land Department or the licensing authority alongside the court’s certificate.
Settlement usually beats litigation on time, cost, and relationships. The expense of expert valuations, translations and advocates on both sides comes out of the same estate the family is arguing over.
When the court route is the right path
Settlement fails for four common reasons: an heir who will not engage at all; an heir who is dishonest about what the estate contains; a dispute of law rather than division; and a minor or protected heir whose share cannot be bargained away.
The court route is conducted through advocates on the roll. It involves: an application to the competent court for the inheritance instrument, or for an executor, or for partition, or for a ruling on the disputed question; document exchange with licensed Arabic translations; expert evidence where needed; and a judgment, possibly followed by an appeal.
Comparison: family settlement versus the court route
| Question | Negotiated settlement | Court route |
|---|---|---|
| What it can resolve | Division in kind, the family home, company buy-out, expense reconciliation, sentimental items, assets abroad | The inheritance instrument, will validity, which law governs, whether an asset is in the estate, executor appointment, preservation, partition, third-party disputes |
| Time and cost | Weeks to months, driven by the family’s own pace; costs are advisers and translations, shared as agreed | Contested proceedings through stages the family does not control; costs on both sides usually met from the estate |
| Effect on relationships | Preserves them where the terms are fair | A judgment produces a winner and a loser |
| When it is the right path | Wherever every heir is engaging honestly and there is no dispute of law or capacity | Where an heir will not engage or is concealing assets; where the dispute is about law or will validity; where a minor’s share is at issue |
Can I be forced to pay my father’s debts?
No, not merely by inheriting. Under Article 1134, the executor pays the estate’s debts from its assets in a prescribed sequence, and under Articles 1139 to 1141 what remains is delivered to the heirs. An heir’s own wealth is exposed only on an independent basis: because the heir co-borrowed, guaranteed the debt, or has since assumed it. The narrow exception under Article 1137: an unsecured creditor omitted from the inventory may recover from an heir up to the value that devolved to that heir.
Hiding estate assets is a crime
Article 253 of Federal Decree-Law 41/2024: anyone who conceals, squanders, destroys or fraudulently seizes any property of the estate, even if they are an heir, is punishable by imprisonment and a fine of between AED 5,000 and AED 100,000, or one of those penalties. Under Article 251, a person entrusted with a minor’s affairs who disposes of the minor’s property without the court’s permit faces the same range.
For the heir who suspects concealment, the right response is the civil machinery: an executor’s appointment, an inventory, and preservation measures. Proof usually comes from the inventory process. For the heir in control, the response is transparency.
Being stonewalled from abroad
An heir overseas who is receiving no information has more options than they usually think. The inheritance instrument can be applied for by any heir; an executor’s appointment can be sought by any interested party; an inventory, once filed, is a court document; and the bank, Land Department and licensing authority act on the court’s instrument, not on the say-so of whichever heir reached them first. See The heir’s step-by-step guide from India and Frozen bank accounts after a death.
Frequently asked questions
Can one heir sell or withdraw estate assets before the shares are settled?
No. Under Article 1126 of FDL 25/2025, an heir may not dispose of any estate asset before receiving the court’s certificate of their share. Assets are administered by an executor and divided after the estate’s charges are paid.
What can I do if a sibling is controlling the estate and will not share information?
Apply to the competent court for appointment of an executor, who must file an inventory within ninety days, and where the estate is at risk, for preservation measures under Article 1123. In Dubai, the application is to the Probate Court.
Am I personally liable for my father’s debts if I inherit?
Not merely by inheriting. The estate’s debts are paid from its assets before distribution (Article 1134). Your own wealth is exposed only if you co-borrowed, guaranteed or assumed the debt, or in the narrow case under Article 1137.
Is hiding inheritance assets a crime in the UAE?
Yes. Under Article 253 of FDL 41/2024, concealing, squandering, destroying or seizing estate property is punishable by imprisonment and a fine of AED 5,000 to AED 100,000. The provision applies to heirs.
A note on getting help. If your family is in a dispute over an estate, or you can see one coming, we can set out the administration route, structure and draft a family settlement, and where settlement fails, instruct and coordinate advocates for the court route. Representation before the mainland courts is arranged through appropriately licensed UAE advocates.
Write to us through the consultation form or at [email protected], and tell us who the heirs are, where they are, and what the estate contains as far as you know.
This article is general information about UAE law as at the date stated. It is not legal advice, and how the law applies depends on the facts of each estate.
Abid Millath, Managing Partner, Millath and Associates
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