Dubai court dismisses trademark lawsuit after claimant fails to pay Dh60,000 expert fee

DUBAI 23°CGOLD/FOREXPRAYER TIMESNEWSLETTERSLOGIN GOLD/FOREXDUBAI 23°CPRAYER TIMES UAEUAEUNITED IN STRENGTHRAMADANASK GULF NEWSPEOPLEGOVERNMENTEDUCATIONCOURT & CRIMEHEALTHEMERGENCIESENVIRONMENTTRANSPORTWEATHER UAE / Court and CrimeDubai court dismisses trademark lawsuit after claimant fails to pay Dh60,000 expert feeFailure to pay expert costs sinks high-profile Dubai trademark infringement case The Dubai Court of First Instance has dismissed a well-known trademark infringement lawsuit after the claimant failed to deposit Dh60,000 for a court-appointed expert, resulting in the forfeiture of his right to rely on technical evidence and failure to prove his claim. The court ruled that the claimant lost the right to benefit from the expert committee’s appointment due to failure to pay  the required deposit, dismissed the case in its current state, and ordered him to bear all legal fees and expenses. The case was filed by the owner of a registered trademark in the UAE covering multiple categories, including leather goods, travel items, clothing, footwear and headwear. He sought a court order to prevent the defendants from using, importing, selling, displaying or storing products bearing his trademark or any confusingly similar mark, and to remove all instances of unauthorised use. The claimant alleged that the defendants exploited his trademark without permission by selling counterfeit products and using the mark in advertisements inside and outside their premises, constituting an infringement of his commercial rights. To support his case, he submitted trademark registration certificates, the defendants’ trade licences and photographs of the disputed products. However, the defendants challenged the lawsuit on procedural and evidentiary grounds, arguing that the evidence was insufficient, raising a lack of legal standing against one party, and citing the absence of original proof of infringement. Given the technical nature of the dispute, the court appointed a specialised expert committee to examine trademark ownership, usage history, similarities between the marks, the likelihood of consumer confusion, and whether any direct or indirect imitation had occurred. The court fixed an expert deposit of Dh60,000 to be paid by the claimant within a specified period , However the claimant failed to pay the expert deposit within the specified timeframe and instead requested limiting the assignment to a single expert at a reduced cost — a request the court rejected for lack of legal justification. The court held that failure to pay the expert fee without valid excuse results in forfeiture of the right to rely on the expert appointment, preventing the technical examination necessary to resolve the dispute. It stressed that the burden of proof lies with the claimant and that liability cannot be established without clear and conclusive evidence, while the presumption remains in favour of the defendants. In the absence of expert findings, the court found that the submitted documents alone were insufficient to establish infringement in a complex trademark dispute. Accordingly, the court concluded that the claimant failed to prove his case and dismissed the lawsuit, ordering him to pay all costs. Property buyer must pay Dh1.54m for pulling out of deal Dh2.25m loan sparks legal battle between friends Dubai Court orders Dh57.38m cargo debt payout UAE court revives Dh3.8m shareholder profit dispute