Farewell: CJ expresses confidence in his successor

The inefficiency of the legal system has compromised its effectiveness, said Chief Justice.

KARACHI:

Only weeks before his term ends, Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry said the cherished goal of providing justice to the people remains elusive, despite it being one of the most regulated countries in the world with a plethora of laws.

In an address at a farewell dinner hosted in his honour by the Sindh Bar Council, Justice Chaudhry, the longest serving chief justice in the country’s history, said that it was the inefficiency of the legal system that has compromised its effectiveness.

He added that procedures, rules, regulations and practices forming the basic fabric of the legal system were conceived in the 19th century and were perhaps best suited to that time. The problems requiring solutions through litigation have changed dramatically both in magnitude and complexity.

“We have failed to keep up. We are trying to solve 21st century problems with 19th century tools. It requires amendments and changes,” he said.

Justice Chaudhry said that using modern technology is not enough to modernise the legal system – it is our mindset which too needs to be synchronised with the modern world.

He said the true and real beneficiaries are the people of the country, who have an inalienable right enshrined in the Constitution to be provided with justice efficiently and effectively. “Therefore, the ancient administrative practices that retard the smooth functioning of the judicial process need to be identified and weeded out.”

He expressed confidence in the new chief justice, and said the Supreme Court and district courts would move forward steadily on the road to progress. He also lauded the sacrifices rendered by the lawyers of Sindh, where the black coats were the first to wage the historic movement against the steps of a dictator.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 28^th, 2013.