The Abu Dhabi Commercial Court has dismissed a lawsuit filed by a man who accused a buyer of underpaying him in the sale of a restaurant, ruling that the claim was unsupported and contradicted by their written agreement.
The plaintiff sought Dh155,000 in alleged unpaid dues, plus 5 percent legal interest from the date of filing until full payment, as well as court and lawyer’s fees. He also asked the court to compel the defendant to take an oath affirming that he owed the amount.
The plaintiff told the court that he had sold the restaurant, including its trade name, premises, equipment, and all assets, for Dh450,000. He said he received a down payment, while the remaining Dh355,000 was to be settled in 12 monthly instalments of Dh29,583 through post-dated cheques.
However, the seller claimed that the buyer failed to complete the payments due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In May this year, the buyer allegedly offered to pay the remaining balance in cash and asked the seller to bring the original cheques.
The plaintiff said he handed over the cheques during their meeting and received a sealed envelope in return, which he later discovered contained only Dh200,000, Dh155,000 short of what was owed.
In its ruling, the court said the case file contained no evidence that the defendant breached the contract. It noted that the plaintiff had admitted to surrendering the original cheques, preventing the court from verifying them. Both parties also confirmed that the ownership of the restaurant had been legally transferred to the buyer.
The court emphasized that the written sale contract signed in 2021 governed the transaction and that no additional evidence was presented to contradict its terms. As such, the plaintiff’s claims were deemed baseless and unsubstantiated.
The court further rejected the request to compel the defendant to take an oath regarding the alleged short payment, ruling that the conditions to apply this legal procedure were not met and that the plaintiff had misused the mechanism.
Consequently, the court dismissed the lawsuit and ordered the plaintiff to pay court fees and legal costs.
