Alternative route: ‘Justice indispensible for a civilised society’

SC judge stresses importance of alternative dispute resolution system.

ISLAMABAD:

A Supreme Court judge has underscored the importance of alternative dispute resolution for ensuring speedy justice.

Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan stressed the importance of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) for speedy delivery of justice. He said that justice was the foundation and object of any civilised society.

Khan was speaking as chief guest at the certificates award ceremony of a weeklong training course on “Skill-based ADR” training for civil judges-cum-judicial magistrates held here at the Centre of Excellence for Law and Judicial Education (CELJE) formerly Federal Judicial Academy, on Friday.

The participants of the course had arrived from all over the country, Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) and Gilgit-Baltistan (G-B).

He said a society would not exist if there was absence of justice. Khan said, “The greatest challenge that the justice delivery system faces today is the delay in the disposal of cases and prohibitive cost of litigation.” “ADR is thought of as a weapon to meet this challenge,” the judge added. He said the primary object of ADR system was to promote the ideal of “access to justice” for all.

Justice Khan said ADR was one of the most attractive options for speedy delivery of justice. He also stressed the need for collective and coordinated efforts on the part of all stakeholders involved in the administration of justice system.

Earlier, in his welcome speech, the centre’s Director General Dr Faqir Hussain said that the ADR system’s aim was to provide justice, and to help not just resolve disputes but also harmonise the relationship between the parties.

He thanked the management and resource persons of the Karachi Centre for Dispute Resolution (KCDR) who had come to share their experiences with the trainees during the course.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 12^th, 2014.