The Need for Saudi Judicial Reforms

Wednesday, 03 March 2010

The Need for Saudi Judicial Reforms

Dr. Khalid Alnowaiser

Saudi Arabia has a significant problem with the recent explosion in the number of lawsuits filed in its Courts.  Commercial and economic progress is being adversely affected by the delay in achieving fair Resolution of legal disputes.  The Kingdom’s judicial system is overburdened due to the number of Lawsuits, and real and meaningful reform is essential for the system to be repaired.

Although recent steps taken by the government to establish specialized courts and to increase the number of judges are helpful, they will not solve the problem unless they are accompanied by other necessary reforms. The real problem is that it is too easy to file a lawsuit, many of which are frivolous.  With mounting delays in receiving court decisions, many litigants are not receiving true justice in Saudi courts.

Litigants are not required to pay filing fees to commence a lawsuit, and if a judgment is entered against a losing party, the latter does not have to pay pre-judgment interest on the amount of the judgment to the winning party.  This rewards those persons who have economic power and can outlast their opponents. Too often, lawsuits are filed just to oppress the defendant, regardless of the true merits of the plaintiff’s cause of action.

Unfairly, courts and judges are being criticized for these delays which are not of their own making. instead, it is Saudi laws which have contributed to this untenable situation.  In fact, the existing laws actually hamper the development of economic initiatives in the Kingdom.

The present situation cries out for a fair and workable solution.  The judiciary is no place for baseless legal maneuvering that is designed to exercise economic power over those persons who truly need its Protection. Unreasonably expending the time of the courts in protracted litigation serves no one.

Therefore, it is now time to reconsider the principle of allowing litigants to file lawsuits without advancing any of the costs.  If there were fees that are imposed on every lawsuit and paid by the plaintiff upon filing his or her case, this would make many people hesitate to file malicious lawsuits designed to oppress others or to simply create delays that clog the courts.  It is essential that laws be enacted requiring the payment of court filing fees in all civil, commercial and administrative lawsuits.  But there must also be a law providing for free filing fees for those whose income is limited and who are not able to bear such fees.  The establishment of a program called “Legal Aid” to assist indigent persons in filing lawsuits would be a welcome development.

Another matter demanding attention is a solution to the current system that fails to penalize a litigant who unreasonably delays legal proceedings to discourage timely judicial decrees in order to increase the other party’s legal expenses and consume court time. It is simply wrong to reward a procrastinator by only entering a verdict for the damages sustained by the prevailing party after the former has exhausted the latter and wasted the time of the judges.  Instead, the losing party who engages in such conduct should be required to pay the attorney fees of the winning party plus all other related expenses. Such a System would reduce, if not eliminate, baseless lawsuits that are designed only to harm someone by requiring the latter to incur legal fees and costs.

The final issue involves Islamic law and the compensation of damages.  Although interest is prohibited under Shariah law, adequate compensation to the prevailing party must take into consideration the economic loss sustained when a decision is improperly delayed by the losing party.  Surely, the winning party has suffered a loss of purchase power on the amount finally awarded to him or her when the lawsuit has been unreasonably delayed by the losing party.

This loss can be calculated and should be awarded by the judge as a matter of course if it can be proved That the losing party acted improperly. It is equally important to be sensitive to the fact that the Compensation not be considered as any prejudgment interest, but rather a clear element of damages, since a sum of money today is worth less than it would have been worth when the lawsuit was filed, given the unavoidable reality of inflation which exists throughout the world.

Leaving these matters to the sole discretion of judges is problematic since it leads to wide discrepancies in judgments throughout Saudi Arabia.  Legislation is absolutely necessary to give legal authority to Judges to consider and award such fees and expenses in favor of successful litigants and against those Persons who misuse the judicial process.  When the situation arises that calls for additional damages as discussed above, judges will have confidence that they are authorized and encouraged to include such damages in the rendering of judgments.  This discretion would have a positive effect upon curtailing frivolous lawsuits filed only to oppress innocent Saudi citizens.

All Saudis interested in improving our judicial system should contemplate and discuss these possible Reforms. As they are enacted, we should see a great reduction in the number of baseless lawsuits, Improvement in judicial efficiency, and the elimination of lawsuits designed only to waste the time and Resources of our courts and judges and inflict inconvenience and expense on our fellow citizens who lack the financial ability to pursue or defend themselves in Saudi courts.

* Written for AlArabiya.net. Dr. Khalid Alnowaiser is a Saudi lawyer and columnist. He can be reached at

khalid@lfkan.com

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