Abu Dhabi Department of Justice (ADJD) building. (Courtesy: WAM)
According to the Emirates News Agency (WAM), the Abu Dhabi Justice Department (ADJD) managed to reduce the divorce rate by about 6% last year as the number of family dispute cases ending in divorce fell to 3% compared to 9% in 2021).
The drop in the divorce rate is a result of the success of various outreach programs and initiatives run by the Ministry of Justice, including the Better Reconciliation (Al Solh Khair) initiative, which helped bring the divorce rate down to around 6% by 2022.
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The divorce rate was 12% in 2018, 13% in 2019 and 2020, dropped to 9% in 2021, and continued to drop to 3% in 2022. It can be seen that the development of processes and interactive procedures has proven to be beneficial to all parties to the conflict.
This achievement adds to ADJD’s record of cementing a culture of tolerance and encouraging amicable dispute resolution to ensure the maintenance of family cohesion and stability.
ADJD emphasizes its commitment to promoting a culture of alternative dispute resolution as part of its efforts to implement best practices and innovative approaches to reconciliation and amicable resolution of family conflicts as well as civil, commercial and real estate disputes. This is in line with the vision of Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister in the Presidential Office and Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Department of Justice, to promote supportive initiatives that ensure social cohesion and stability.
ADJD explained that the decline in the divorce rate is a result of ADJD’s Alternative Dispute Resolution Department’s efforts to improve performance and develop working methods that are in line with the emirate’s social, economic and technological development.
The positive outcome comes from the success of resolving disputes outside of the traditional court setting, coupled with the efforts of family counselors to persuade parties to opt for amicable dispute resolution, ultimately leading to fewer divorces.
In terms of volume, the ADJD handled over 99.2% of family disputes referred to it for consideration in 2022, involving 15,606 family disputes and successfully resolved 63% of disputes in the emirate amicably.
Under the Better Reconciliation initiative, innovative initiatives aimed at keeping abreast of developments, raising awareness, consolidating and strengthening relationships between family members.
Intensive instructional sessions with certified family counselors and organized training workshops, supplemented by multimedia and interactive exercises to help absorb conflict coping skills. All of this is combined with a follow-up plan to ensure the settlement agreement is followed and to address any obstacles that may arise in its implementation.
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