JEDDAH, 12 June 2006 — More women in Saudi Arabia are pursuing careers in law, yet face many obstacles, according to a legal expert.
Their inability to travel abroad without permission from a male guardian and the stigma of interacting with the opposite sex are two issues that women face if they want to become lawyers, Jeddah-based lawyer Khaled Abu Rashid said in an interview with Arab News.
Abu Rashid said women would be in some way more qualified than men in this field, yet, “they would be risking their social life.”
There are no women licensed to practice law in the Kingdom yet, even though Jeddah’s King Abdul Aziz University recently enrolled 55 women in its Islamic Studies and Law Department and Umm Al-Qura Women’s College reported an increase in its intake.
As Abu Rashid points out, Islamic studies is important because law in the Kingdom is based in Shariah. “They need the background in Islamic law,” he said.
While the Ministry of Justice has not yet granted any licenses for women lawyers, the Kingdom is in the process of studying the implementation of family courts. Once implemented — possibly sometime this year — family courts would open the way for women lawyers to enter areas of law that would address divorce, domestic abuse and child custody. Furthermore, family law would be more likely to involve women clients, providing a more socially acceptable woman-to-woman lawyer-client relationship.
“Saudi women still don’t like to discuss private issues with unrelated men,” said Abu Rashid. “Thus the availability of women lawyers with whom women clients can speak freely is becoming a demand.”
Currently women students who pursue law become legal clerks or consultants or take government jobs as legal analysts.
Law intern Jehan Gurban, who recently graduated from Umm Al-Qura University with a bachelor’s degree in Islamic studies, said she has noticed a marked increase in women students pursuing law.
“The purpose of these women joining the field is no longer simply to teach Islamic studies in schools or colleges,” she said. “They want to practice, not just teach.”
Since the general field of law in Saudi Arabia is dominated by men, entering the practice can be a challenge for pioneering women. Families may still believe that law is a risky field for their daughters to enter, but Gurban said that her family has been supportive.
As legal consultants — currently one of the few non-teaching career choices for aspiring women lawyers — women spend three years in internship studying case law and specializing.
Abu Rashid says that now is a good time for women to begin seriously considering their future as lawyers. “Current legal consultants have the advantage of becoming the pioneers as Saudi women lawyers,” he said.
Gurban agrees. “We are doing our best to meet the expectations and learn about rules and regulations of every sector,” she said.
A decade ago, the Kingdom loosened up restrictions on women providing legal counsel to clients in a court of law. Though technically not lawyers, they have been able since then to be so-called “legally appointed agents” of women litigants. This helped pave the way for more grievances being filed by women, particularly in domestic abuse, divorce and custody cases.
Young aspiring women lawyers like Gurban are optimistic that the time has come for them to step in as full-fledged lawyers.
