Alternative Dispute Resolution: Improve Judical System of Pakistan
Alternative dispute resolution (ADR) is a mechanism of resolving the disputes outside the court. It includes mediation, arbitration, conciliation, and negotiation. Through these methods the conventional court proceedings do not take place; for example, in arbitration, an impartial arbitrator is selected by the parties to the arbitration agreement or sometimes by the court to adjudicate the matter as enunciated in the arbitration Act of 1940. Similarly, in conciliation the amicable relations between the parties to the dispute are facilitated by the conciliator, and usually, the decision of the conciliator is not binding.
The world has utilized the above mentioned ways for serving the justice since long. The picture of Pakistan is somehow different: it inherits the judicial system that has been given by its colonial masters. Adversarial system became the basis of the judiciary in which the judges have a passive role; they have very low discretionary powers. Consequently, the justice is served but it cannot be seen.
The essence of dispensing the justice lies in its speed. However, it is greatly unfortunate that many cases in Pakistan are pending in lower courts as well as in higher courts. The Law and Justice Commission of Pakistan, in its Bi-Annual Report of Judicial Statistics for the period from July to December 2023, revealed that 82% of the pending cases (1.86 million) were at the district judiciary level and the remaining 18% (0.39 million cases) were at the upper tier, including the Supreme Court. The bulk of cases not only increase the pressure of judges but also make them inept in dispensing the major cases. Pendency of cases is not the only problem that causes the injustice; nevertheless, the procedural lapses and the inability of judicial heads have caused many dents on the judiciary.
It is for this reason that the other mechanisms are needed to alleviate the burden of judiciary and to restore the esteem of it.
Arbitration is one such method that provides the platform for amicable resolution of disputes. The parties to the dispute agrees for the submission of present or future dispute to an impartial third person. The arbitration agreement need not be incorporated in a formal document while the case in the court of law is submitted by filling a formal plaint which requires money and technical requisites for its admission in the court.
Moreover, conciliation; for instance, is another mode for resolving disputes in which a conciliator is selected by both parties mutually. Unlike arbitration where an award or a decision is made by the arbitrator, the conciliator tries to bring an acceptable agreement between the parties by their mutual consent.
In hindsight, the mechanism of alternative dispute resolution is a key towards the speedy and cost-effective justice. In a country like Pakistan, where people are less aware of legal intricacies, the traditional judicial system based on adversarial principles and procedural technicalities proves ineffective in dispensing justice. Therefore, adoption of alternative dispute resolution methods is essential to transform our judiciary into a streamlined instrument for ensuring prompt and equitable dispensation of justice.
The author is a student of Sharia and Llaw at International Islamic University, Islamabad.
