We had a car repairing garage in Sharjah. But when my father returned to India for a long time due to some work and I could not handle the business. Rent cheques for the garage were issued from my father’s personal account to the landlord. As soon as I realised we could not pay, so I vacated the place. I was cleared from the case, but the landlord filed a police case against the cheque issued by my father. Unfortunately, the landlord expired recently. What happens to the case against me?
Dishonour of a cheque is a criminal offence punishable with detention or fine in accordance with Article (401) of the Federal Law No 3 of 1987 on the Issuance of Penal Code, which states: “Detention or a fine shall be imposed upon anyone who, in bad faith, gives a draft (cheque) without a sufficient and drawable balance or who, after giving a cheque, withdraws all or part of the balance, making the balance insufficient for settlement of the cheque, or if he orders a drawee not to cash a cheque or makes or signs the cheque in a manner that prevents it from being cashed.
The same penalty shall apply to any one who endorses a cheque in favour of another or gives him a bearer draft, knowing that there is no sufficient balance to honor the cheque or that it is not drawable.”
It is assumed that you are not a signatory to the cheques issued to the landlord. Therefore you shall not have any criminal liability on the cheques signed and issued by your father to the landlord. The criminal case filed by the landlord against your father will not go away due to the demise of the landlord. Should your father return to the UAE, he will have to deal with the consequences of this criminal case filed by the deceased landlord against him.