Dispute over The Landmark in Dubai

Due to the designer’s lawsuit against the Municipality of Dubai for violating the contract’s copyright, the new landmark structure in Dubai is the subject of considerable controversy. The developer argues that the fixed structure, which allows for the exercise of power, breaches contract law. The architect asserts that the structure might be a fake. The Municipality of Dubai is accused of violating the copyright of the architect, Mr. Fernando Donis, whose first design inspired the construction and was born in Mexico. The case was filed in December in a federal court in the United States. Mr. Donis is famous for having won the international competition to design the unique building where he was competing with more than 900 aspirants.

It is unfortunate that he was never included in the execution of the project. The lawsuit claims that Mr. Donis was not rewarded for his intellectual property. The federation has however strengthened the contract law so as to protect Mr. Donis. According to the New York Times, Mr. Donis, aged 44, had spent enough duration in Dubai to be left out from the daring act. He also suggests that it is unbelievable that a city could just be elevated from the beginning within such a short duration. From the Lawsuit filed by Mr. Donis, it is clear that he seeks some unspecified compensation for the damages and the ruling that his individual official document was breached. The Municipality of Dubai had “Taken the Frame of Dubai as its own without crediting or paying the person who had come up with it.” According to the New York article writer, “this was an infringement of the intercontinental copyright and is also a bad case through the sovereign bullying that justifies being rectified.”

Summing up, the competition rules for making the structure had endowed him through the legal ownership of the idea that, “the author or the initial design that was first placed will have to keep his copyright. His work can only be in use by the Municipality of Dubai after signing the equivalent contract.”

Works Cited

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/08/business/dubai-frame-building-stolen-design.html