Download This PaperThe Significance of Establishing Pre-Trial Procedures in Saudi Civil Judicial Proceedings, Using U.S. Federal Law as an Example
Journal of Human and Administrative, Majmaah University, 2020
13 Pages Posted: 11 May 2020 Last revised: 27 May 2020
Date Written: April 1, 2020
Abstract
In the wake of the April 25, 2016 announcement of Saudi Arabian Vision 2030, which, among other goals, presented the country’s 15-year plan to attract high-quality investors from major international companies, some questions have arisen about the legal environment in the Kingdom, especially the effectiveness of pre-trial court procedures, which will be the focus of this study. From a practical standpoint, the judgment procedures are lengthy. A major reason for this is the absence of an initial conference, which is one of the first significant steps in a civil case in the U.S. federal court system. This absence leads to significant drawbacks, such as the extension of a trial’s length due to exchanges of memoranda between the parties, each of which does not know what the other will be presenting as evidence or even what the main issues are. Several hearings could be required because a party can request additional hearing to prepare its answers. The time between hearings can be two to three months, if not longer. In Saudi courts, parties often discover that the court is not competent to hear the case, or that a party should not continue in the case because most of the evidence is against him or for other reasons. The amount of time taken up by court procedures could be shortened by establishing a pre-trial procedure such as an initial conference, similar to that in the U.S. legal system, to make the trial itself run more smoothly and quickly.
Keywords: K Pre-Trial Procedure, Saudi Vision 2030, Case Management Conference, Saudi Law
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