Saudi Judges With Bankers’ Hours?

So this reporter went to the courthouse where civil cases are heard in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Here are a few of his observations:

Though the court’s hours are from 7:30 – 2:30, by 8:00, neither the president of the court, nor the administrative manager was present.

If a plaintiff is not in court by 8:00, the case will be thrown out.

At 8:15, of the 23 judges, not a single one was in his office!

By 10:00, 9 of the 23 judges were there. The rest of the judges did not show up at all.

The following day, 8 of the 23 judges showed up.

Per the reporter, Amr Al-Faisal, “What’s nice about all of this is that if a judge is late or absent it means that the case has to be delayed a month, months or perhaps years.” Ouch.

I’ll let Mr. Al-Faisal have the last word:

I conclude this article with a request to my dear brothers and sisters. You must visit the general court in Jeddah to see for yourselves the truth of what’s happening there. And I’m sure that will only increase your trust in the judicial system and induce you to join me in my prayers for them to live long and remain always alert, concerned about people’s rights and making sure they are not denied justice. Amen.

You can read his article in full here.