Doha: The number of court cases in Qatar’s Supreme Judiciary Council (SJC) amounted to 81,452 in 2012 and verdicts were issued on 65,363 cases, latest statistics reveal.
Although the number of Qatari judges is on the rise, they comprise 60 to 65 percent of the total judges in the Council, Chairman of the SJC Massoud bin Mohammed Al Ameri told Qatar News Agency (QNA) in an interview yesterday.
He said that Qatar has surpassed several countries as far as independence of judiciary was concerned in the region. Nearly 80 percent of the total cases that the courts received were ruled last year.
“Qatar’s judiciary enjoys independence from the very beginning. Its independence emerged clearly when the courts came under the chairmanship of the Supreme Judiciary Council and there is no other supervision from any other executive party.”
The SJC was formed under Qatar’s Judicial Authority Law and the Council presides over all court rulings as well as the appointment, transfer and assignment of judges.
Al Ameri said that there were many judges who specialised in different areas such as civil family, commercial and criminal issues.
One of the methods which helps in moving the cases forward at a fast pace is the recently launched ‘judicial encyclopaedia’ on the Council’s website, which gives the judge easy access to legal information. Speaking on the alternative means of dispute resolution, Al Ameri said that the law deals with such cases in cooperation with the Supreme Council for Family Affairs and the Family Consulting Center. Qatar also deals with rental disputes through committees formed for settlement of rental disputes. Al Ameri said that there are plans to raise the number of Qatari judges.
“Efforts are in place to increase the national cadres in the field of judiciary. The process needs a long time and experience, and we try to blend the two for those who finish the courses.”
The training courses are provided for judges, internally and externally, and continue during the judiciary season. Trainees also have access to the cases in other countries. The workshops and courses are designed to keep up with the development of Qatar.
The Chairman said that there were open means of communication that the Qatari judiciary holds with various organs and parties.
Asked about the fourth conference of the heads of Supreme courts, which was held in Doha last week, Al Ameri said that the conference discussed a host of key issues. This included the contribution of the judiciary in laying the foundation of social security in the area of family affairs, the role of judiciary in the application and enforcement of international conventions in investment disputes and also the issue of specialised courts as a means to promote justice.” The Peninsula
