Dubai Court Overturns Order To Hand Girl Over To Mother Under Malaysian Custody Ruling

(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) A Malaysian father in Dubai has won his appeal against an order that would have allowed his daughter to be handed over to her mother under a Malaysian custody ruling.

Dubai's Court of Appeal ruled on September 29 that the mother had not provided the official documents needed to enforce the Malaysian judgment in the UAE. The decision overturned a June order that had allowed enforcement.

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The girl lives with her father in Dubai. Her mother had asked the UAE courts to enforce a Malaysian ruling granting her custody, along with later orders for the child to be returned to Malaysia.

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The father's lawyers, Amal Al Rashedi Lawyers and Legal Consultants, argued that the documents submitted by the mother did not meet the legal requirements for enforcing a foreign judgment.

The court agreed. It found that the mother had not provided an official certificate from the Malaysian court, or another competent authority, confirming that the custody judgment was final and binding under Malaysian law.

The court said this was enough to overturn the enforcement order. It stressed that its decision was about whether the requirements for enforcing a foreign judgment had been met. It did not decide which parent should have custody.

"This case went beyond recognising a foreign custody arrangement," said Dr Hassan Elhais, Senior Legal Consultant at Amal Al Rashedi Lawyers and Legal Consultants. "The Malaysian proceedings included orders aimed at securing the child's physical return from the UAE to Malaysia, making the requirements for enforcement particularly significant."

"The decisive issue was the absence of formal evidence establishing that the Malaysian judgment had acquired the legal status required for enforcement," he said.

Background to the case

The original Malaysian ruling was issued in May 2024. It granted custody to the mother, set out the father's contact rights, and stopped him from taking the child outside Malaysia or the state of Penang without her permission.

The father's appeal was rejected in May 2025. Permission for a further appeal to Malaysia's Federal Court was refused that September.

A separate order in June 2025 required the father to hand the girl over to her mother so she could take her back to Malaysia. It also allowed police officers, Malaysian embassy staff and other appointed people to help carry out the order.

The mother argued that the custody ruling was final because the father's earlier challenges had been rejected. She said the later order was meant to carry out that ruling, and that she was asking the Dubai court to enforce the original custody decision.

The father challenged whether the documents met the legal requirements for enforcement. He also said proceedings were still ongoing in Malaysia over the order to return his daughter to her mother.

The Dubai court looked at the earlier Malaysian appeal decisions but said they did not replace the official proof needed to show the custody ruling was final. It said the judge was not required to work this out by comparing documents from different stages of the Malaysian case.

"The responsibility for providing that evidence rests with the party seeking enforcement," Dr Elhais said.

The court also rejected the argument that the UAE–Malaysia Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement supported enforcement of the custody ruling.

Wider implications

Dr Elhais, who is also Co-Chair of the Relocation Committee of the International Academy of Family Lawyers, said the decision matters for international child-return disputes.

"Cases involving a child's return to another country can be urgent and have immediate consequences for the family," he said. "That urgency makes careful preparation essential: the application must establish the conditions for enforcement through the evidence required in the country where enforcement is sought."

The father's lawyers also raised arguments about jurisdiction and the child's welfare. They submitted psychological assessments and school records in support of keeping the girl in her current environment.

The judges said they did not need to rule on those arguments because the missing proof was enough to resolve the appeal.

The court rejected the mother's enforcement application. It ordered her to pay court fees and costs, along with Dh300 towards legal fees.

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