King receives annual reports of Judicial Council, Sharia Courts, integrity commission

AMMAN —  His Majesty King Abdullah received, in three separate meetings on Wednesday, the annual reports on the Judicial Council, Sharia Courts, and Integrity and Anti-Corruption Commission (IACC) and their conduct of business for the year 2024.

 

Meeting with Judicial Council President Mahmoud Ababneh, His Majesty was briefed on the status of the regular courts, the administrative judiciary, and the public prosecution, and called for continuing to increase the expeditious and timely adjudication of cases and litigation procedures, according to a Royal Court statement. 

 

The King commended the judiciary’s efforts in raising the level of performance.

According to the Judicial Council’s report, the judiciary has reduced the total number of referred cases by 18 per cent, compared to 2023.

 

The regular courts adjudicated more than 417,000 cases, accounting for 87 per cent of total cases that went before the courts, with an average duration of 57-day litigation in all courts, the statement said.

 

His Majesty also met with Chief Islamic Justice Abdul Hafez Rabtah and Higher Sharia Court President Kamal Smadi to receive the Sharia Courts’ annual report for 2024.

 

The King commended the efforts of the Sharia Courts in enhancing the level of services provided to citizens.

 

His Majesty stressed the importance of the Sharia Courts’ role in promoting family cohesion and community protection, while noting the need to develop electronic services for these courts.

 

According to the Sharia Courts’ report, there were around 150,000 dismissed or dropped cases, accounting for 86 per cent of total cases. Meanwhile, the courts’ family reconciliation and mediation offices succeeded in restoring more than 9,000 families to their normal lives, and diverting 39,000 cases from judicial litigation to consensual agreements.

 

The report also highlighted that the Chief Islamic Justice Department launched a platform offering 73 digital services to facilitate access to judicial services.

During the King’s meeting with IACC Chairman Muhannad Hijazi on the commission’s report, His Majesty praised the efforts of IACC staff.

 

The King urged continuing strengthening the capabilities of the IACC’s cadres, and to maintain coordination between official institutions to enhance the national integrity and transparency system.

 

According to the IACC report, the commission recovered, contributed to recovering, or prevented the waste of public funds amounting to around JD61 million, in addition to detecting suspected tax evasion cases amounting to around JD110 million.

 

The IACC also examined more than 2,000 investigation files, referred 197 of them to the public prosecution, and launched an initiative to raise awareness among university students about their role in promoting integrity and combating corruption.

 

Royal Hashemite Court Chief Yousef Issawi and Director of the Office of His Majesty Alaa Batayneh attended the meetings.