Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb calls for stronger mediation system to reduce court backlog

ISLAMABAD – Supreme Court Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb on Monday stressed the need to strengthen the Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) mechanism in Pakistan, saying the mediation can play a vital role in reducing the growing burden of pending cases in courts. The Supreme Court judge said civilized countries around the world had successfully adopted ADR systems and Pakistan was also moving towards institutionalising mediation through proper legislative foundations. He made these remarks while addressing a session on mediation and dispute resolution in Islamabad. Justice Aurangzeb revealed that a court-annexed mediation centre was being established at the Supreme Court with the support of the United Nations Development Programme. He said practical implementation would improve gradually once the required legal framework was in place. Referring to international examples, he said Turkey had started mediation in 2013 and by 2022 nearly three million cases had been resolved through the system. He added that Pakistan could benefit from similar reforms, particularly when over 1.82 million cases were currently pending before courts across the country. The judge said Pakistan had no shortage of qualified mediators and legal experts, including lawyers specialising in banking, service, civil and land dispute laws. However, he noted that courts needed to refer more cases to mediators to make the system effective. “The primary duty of courts is adjudication, but judges should encourage mediation,” Justice Aurangzeb said. He observed that litigants were often reluctant to pay mediation fees after already paying legal counsel, but appreciated mediation centres offering pro bono services for deserving parties. Justice Aurangzeb said the judiciary had decided to train judges and court officials as mediators in order to promote ADR mechanisms. He added that two mediators had recently completed training and more professionals were expected to join by the end of the year. He furth