It was when many UAE-based businesses went digital in response to coronavirus last year that Emirati lawyer Abeer Sharif first thought of moving the law online as well.
Sharif first started posting legal advice on her social media channels late last year but developed Ask Legal as an app last month when she gauged that interest in the subject matter was high.
“During coronavirus, everyone was using Zoom to meet and applications to manage their daily needs and so no one can dispense with online for doing business anymore,” said Sharif.
“Because Dubai is such a fast-paced city where everyone is always busy, people were requesting phone consultations even before the pandemic so I thought, why not have an app?” she continued.
The Ask Legal app covers civil, commercial, criminal, family, and labour law, as well as issues pertaining to intellectual property. After downloading the app, users select which segment of the law they are interested in and type their question into the chatbox. They can then chat with Sharif about their case for 30 minutes for a fee of AED300 or AED500 if they prefer a video communication channel like Zoom.
Just two months since its launch, Sharif is averaging ten questions a week through Ask Legal. Some more complicated cases require a follow-up in her offices, Sharif explained, but most get resolved through the chat.
And she revealed Ask Legal is popular among expats who often can’t easily access the legal information they need.
“I cover corporate law on Ask Legal which has relevance to expats who want to know the legalities of setting up a business in the UAE, how to deal with their employees and their obligations as employers,” explained Sharif.
While Sharif currently specialises in UAE law only, she has ambitions to expand to cover DIFC and English law by next year.
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