JEDDAH: Saudi legal experts have urged the authorities to incorporate international arbitration regulations in the Kingdom. Their reasons are that they believe the current Saudi arbitration system, which is awaiting implementation, was prepared a long time ago and that this renders it unsuitable for the increasingly complex needs of the present.
“The system was drafted many years ago with the aim of finding solutions to problems seemingly relevant to that time. According to its provisions, a law court will decide if the case is to go to arbitration or not. The court will also approve the judges and approve the decision the arbitrators make,” legal expert Khaled Abu Rashid told Arab News.
Any changes to the present system require royal approval because the system was initially set up by a royal decision, Abu Rashid added. He wants the speedy implementation of the arbitration system with timely amendments because the ongoing reforms in the country’s legal system will require at least six years to complete.
Another reason why Abu Rashid wants the implementation of the arbitrary system is the comparatively small amount of time required for the disposal of a case under the modern arbitration system.
“In the normal courts, currently at least one year is required for procedural matters, such as presenting a lawsuit for trial, finding judges and approving the final verdict — and in some cases, the time required for appeal to a higher court. On the other hand, the total time required for a case to reach an arbitrated settlement is only six months.”
At the same time, the delay in the implementation of an effective arbitration system leaves no option to the Saudi public but to resort to the ordinary law courts, which are already overburdened with cases because of an insufficient number of judges, the legal expert noted. He hopes that the implementation of an updated arbitration system will guarantee the disposal of several cases within a short time and to the satisfaction of both parties.
Abdullah Al-Hajji, another Saudi lawyer, said arbitration could be useful for settling disputes related to family matters, real estate and contracts. “Cases involving Hadd punishments (punishments prescribed by God), such as for murder and adultery, cannot come under arbitration because the Shariah court is the competent authority to deal with such cases,” Al-Hajji told Arab News.
When asked if arbitration can help reconcile two parties, Al-Hajji said such attempts might contribute to an increase in crime because people would assume that they could get away with reconciliation and subsequent pardon on paying blood money.
Abu Rashid does not believe that arbitration would be useful in cases related to the media. “This is because there is an understanding between a journalist and the source of his story. In the event of any disagreement arising between them, the matter is settled by the Ministry of Culture and Information,” he said.
