Legal services
Contentious and non-contentious advice for providers, insurers and patients.
We handle medico-legal matters for hospitals, clinics and insurers, and we represent patients and families harmed by medical error. Licensing, contracts and compliance on one side; complaints, liability committees and compensation claims on the other.
Healthcare in the UAE is closely regulated. Providers are licensed by the Dubai Health Authority, the Department of Health Abu Dhabi, the Ministry of Health and Prevention or the free zone authorities, and the Medical Liability Law (Federal Decree-Law No. 4 of 2016 and its executive regulation) sets out the duties of practitioners, the role of the medical liability committees and the route to compensation. Patients' data is protected by a dedicated health data law, and the criminal law applies to the most serious errors.
Khalifa Al Sada Advocates & Legal Consultants advises the healthcare sector on both contentious and non-contentious matters. We handle medico-legal work for hospitals, clinics and insurers, and we represent parties aggrieved by healthcare professionals or institutions.
We act for:
Because we advise both providers and patients, we understand what the liability committees look for from each side.
For providers we advise on facility and practitioner licensing, on employment and locum contracts, on patient consent forms, medical records and health data compliance, on advertising rules for healthcare, and on the agreements with insurers, suppliers and referral partners. When a complaint is made we represent the facility or the practitioner before the regulator, the medical liability committee and the higher committee, and in any civil or criminal proceedings that follow.
For patients we assess whether the care fell below the standard the law requires, obtain the medical records and an independent expert opinion, file the complaint with the health authority, and pursue compensation before the civil courts once liability has been examined by the committee. We handle claims for wrong diagnosis, surgical error, birth injury, medication error and failure to obtain informed consent, and we advise families on claims arising from a death. We also act in disputes between providers and insurers over claim rejections and network agreements.
Medical negligence cases are decided largely on expert evidence and on the committee's findings, so the way the complaint is framed and the records are presented is decisive. Our lawyers know the procedure of the health authorities and the liability committees, and our advocates take the matter through the courts when compensation is due.
We work in Arabic and English and handle these sensitive matters with the discretion they require.
We obtain the medical records and give a preliminary view on whether the care met the required standard.
We instruct an independent specialist to review the treatment and report on the standard of care and causation.
We file the complaint with the health authority and represent you before the medical liability committee.
We pursue the civil claim for compensation, or defend the practitioner or facility, before the courts.
A civil claim is usually preceded by a complaint to the health authority, whose medical liability committee examines whether there was an error. The committee's report is central to the court case.
Only gross error resulting in death or serious harm is prosecuted, and the law requires the liability committee's finding first. Most cases are civil.
Time limits apply from the date the harm was discovered. Contact us early so that records can be secured and the complaint filed in time.
Yes. We defend practitioners and facilities before the regulator and the courts, and we advise on licensing and compliance to reduce risk.
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