Real Estate Developer Ordered To Pay Dh1.243 Million In Unpaid Marketing Fees

The Dubai Real Estate Court has ordered a real estate development company to pay Dh1.243 million to a real estate marketing and sales firm for unpaid contractual dues, including project launch expenses and late-payment penalties.

 

The award includes statutory interest at 5% a year from the date the lawsuit was filed until full payment, as well as court fees, expenses and legal costs.

 

The dispute arose from an agreement signed in April 2025, under which the plaintiff was granted exclusive rights for one year to manage the marketing and sales of a real estate project.

 

Under the agreement, the marketing firm was entitled to a commission of 1% of the project's sales value for marketing services and 7.5% for sales services, in addition to fees for organising the project's launch event.

 

The plaintiff maintained that it had fulfilled its contractual obligations but had not received the full amount due before the developer terminated the agreement in November 2025.

 

It initially sought Dh1.3 million, covering unpaid marketing and sales commissions, launch event expenses and late-payment penalties.

 

The court appointed an accounting expert to examine the agreement, the parties' financial records and the services provided. The expert concluded that the plaintiff had met its contractual obligations and calculated the outstanding amount at Dhs1.243 million.

 

The sum comprised Dh616,000 for project launch activities, Dh599,000 for marketing and sales services, and Dh28,000 in delay penalties.

 

The defendant disputed some of the commissions and fees, arguing that they were not payable and that the agreement breached real estate brokerage regulations. It also sought a fresh expert review and the recovery of amounts it considered to have been overpaid.

 

The court rejected these arguments, finding that the agreement combined marketing services with real estate brokerage activities. It held that the nature of the contractual relationship had to be determined by the actual obligations undertaken and work performed, rather than the description given to the agreement.

 

The court also found that the plaintiff was licensed to undertake real estate brokerage activities, rejecting the argument that the agreement was invalid on regulatory grounds.

 

It considered the expert's findings and supporting documents sufficient to resolve the dispute and declined to refer the matter for further expert examination.

 

The court also dismissed the defendant's recovery claim because it had not been presented in accordance with the applicable legal requirements or accompanied by the required fees.

 

The judgment ordered the developer to pay Dh1.243 million, together with statutory interest, court fees, expenses and legal costs.