Trend of seeking adjournments will no longer fly, says CJP Isa

CJP says given backlog of cases, counsels should be prepared to present arguments, case documents when approaching SC

ISLAMABAD:

Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Qazi Faez Isa said on Monday that the trend of seeking another date for hearing will no longer be entertained by the Supreme Court (SC).

A three-member bench led by the CJP was hearing a case pertaining to a land dispute during which one of the counsels requested the court to set another date for proceedings.

At this, the CJP remarked that the lawyer should forget that seeking an adjournment could be an option.

With SC facing a backlog of cases, the CJP said that, "This is also a message for everyone, the trend of seeking adjournments will no longer fly. The number of cases pending before the apex court is quite high".

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Notices should be issued during one hearing and arguments should be sought at the next, said CJP Isa.

He further said that it may be so in other courts that adjournments are sought to present documents and the next date for hearing is given. "[But] if a case is being brought before the Supreme Court, all documents should be complete."

The court rejected the lawyer's plea.

Justice Isa took oath as the 29th CJP on September 16. Among other changes, last week he constituted a committee of judges on case management to address the massive backlog of cases pending before the top court.

The committee is also to determine the fate of complaints lodged against judges, which are pending before the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC).

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This case management policy, proposed by Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah and Justice Munib Akhtar, was pending approval in fomer CJP Umar Ata Bandial’s chamber for over a year.

Meanwhile, CJP Isa along with senior puisne judge Justice Sardar Tariq Masood also held a meeting with the representatives of the Pakistan Bar Council (PBC) and Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) to discuss the apex court’s disposal rate.

After consulting with both the lawyers’ bodies, CJP Isa decided to issue a monthly proposed cause list.

According to a report released by the apex court on August 31, 2023, the apex court has as many as 56,544 cases pending before it.

These include 30,578 civil petitions, 9,875 civil appeals, 9,384 pending military requests, 1,653 review requests awaiting disposition, 25 suo motu cases initiated by the court itself and one reference.