MOST OBSERVERS would agree that Dubai has experienced phenomenal growth in its real estate industry, especially during the last 5 years. Everywhere one looks, the evidence of this growth can be seen--in the amazing display of glittering hotels, such as the Burj AI Arab, office buildings, such as the Burj Dubai, which will be the tallest building in the world when completed, and shopping centers, such as Mall of the Emirates with its indoor ski slope; in the development of free zones, such as the Jebel Ali Free Zone and the Dubai International Financial Centre (“DIFC”), where companies can be 100% owned by non-UAE nationals; in the passage by the DIFC of the Investment Trust Law and the Collective Investment Law No. (1) in 2006, and their related amendments and regulations, which prescribe the formation and operation of Real Estate Investment Trusts (“REITs”); and the list goes on. Especially exciting to lawyers who have chosen to practice in Dubai is the constantly developing legal and regulatory framework that is necessary to provide the legal protection and clarity that property ownership and investment require in order for the Dubai property industry to be successful. Much of this framework in the real property area has only been in place since 2006 in Dubai. This article provides a brief overview of the major laws of this legal framework, with emphasis on the laws of Dubai and references to the laws of Abu Dhabi and the DIFC, in which many foreign companies choose to operate.

The Dubai Court of First Instance recently ordered that an identical trade name be deleted from the Commercial Register as it violated the plaintiff's registered and well-known trade mark as well as its name.

The plaintiff, a well-known international commercial bank, filed a commercial action against the defendant, a real estate company, for using its registered trade name/mark as the latter's trade name. The bank's name is a registered trade mark in the UAE including for services classed as real estate. The defendant had registered an identical trade name with the Dubai Chamber of Commerce & Industry in 2004, prior to the plaintiff's registration of the trade mark. However, the plaintiff was able to establish prior registration of the trade name in the UAE, which dates back to 1975. The defendant's argument was that there are substantial differences in the name and activities carried out by the parties; thus there is no confusion amongst consumers.

For the numerous people who come to Dubai, the new rental laws and their implications are very important. With the great influx of people in Dubai, rental laws have become a very important issue. With the rising demands for rented property in Dubai, the rents have increased considerably over the years. All the people who come to Dubai for work face the problem of exorbitant rents. But the new law will come as a breath of fresh air because it states that the rent cannot be increased by more than 5% of the lease price.

Dubai - The interest groups in Dubai's real estate -- with the announcement of a system of committees on Thursday--are looking at a climate that promises better coordination and greater transparency.

Marwan bin Ghalita, CEO of Real Estate Regulatory Authority (Rera), said that the committee system would enable officials to more readily hear feedback from various interest groups in the real estate market.