Under the proposed system, a judges’ evaluation committee will review judges’ performance at the end of each year.
On judicial reforms, Tarar said a seven-member committee had been constituted to ensure transparency. PHOTO: AND
Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar on Saturday said the government was committed to improving legal education, strengthening professional training of lawyers and ensuring effective administration of justice.
Addressing the inauguration of the Lawyers’ Training Academy at the Punjab Bar Council and a certificate award ceremony for participants who passed the bar professional course, the minister said work was underway to introduce a comprehensive health insurance policy for lawyers and their families. He said that the federal and Punjab governments were extending full support to the welfare of the legal fraternity.
Tarar said lawyers would benefit from treatment for cancer, kidney, liver and heart diseases in public and private hospitals under the proposed health program. He added that the Punjab government had released Rs 1.35 billion in grants for the bar associations and announced another Rs 20 million for the bar professional course.
The minister said that the establishment of the Directorate of Legal Education in the Bar Council of Pakistan was a major reform aimed at modernizing legal education. He described the legal profession as a sacred responsibility and urged lawyers to strengthen their institutions and resolve disputes through institutional forums.
On judicial reforms, Tarar said a seven-member committee had been constituted to ensure transparency and merit in the appointment of High Court judges. The committee would interview the candidates and submit its recommendations to the Judicial Commission.
Questioning why High Court judges should not undergo interviews while civil judges and additional sessions judges were required to pass exams, the minister said judicial appointments must be based strictly on merit. He added that the government was introducing, for the first time, a constitutional mechanism for the annual evaluation of judges’ performance through a judges’ evaluation committee.
Under the proposed system, a judges’ evaluation committee would review judges’ performance at the end of each year. If a judge’s performance is found to be unsatisfactory, the committee can send a referral to the Judicial Commission and recommend his removal, he added.
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Commenting on the constitutional reforms, Tarar said the 28th constitutional amendment would not be introduced in a hurry. He said that whenever the amendment was brought forward, it would only be after wide consultation. He noted that the legal community, including the Supreme Court Bar Association and other bar councils, had supported the 26th and 27th Constitutional Amendments.
Punjab Bar Council Executive Committee Chairman Fakhar Hayat Awan said that the Bar Professional Course has been compulsory since 2018 and announced that the Punjab Bar Council will no longer issue licenses without verification of law degrees by the Higher Education Commission (HEC).
He also announced that the bar association’s benevolent fund had been increased from Rs300,000 to Rs600,000, pledging that there would be no compromise on the rights and welfare of lawyers.
Earlier, the Federal Minister of Justice inaugurated the Lawyers Training Academy and later distributed certificates to participants who successfully completed the professional bar course.
The ceremony was attended by Judicial Commission Member Ahsan Bhoon, Vice Chairman Pakistan Bar Council Pir Muhammad Masood Chishti, Vice Chairman Punjab Bar Council Khawaja Qaiser Butt, senior officials of Pakistan and Punjab Bar Councils and a large number of lawyers.
