Saudi Supreme Judicial Council Disciplines 68 Judges

The Supreme Judicial Council of Saudi Arabia has imposed disciplinary actions on 68 judges over the past year, according to a recent official report. The report, published in the Official Gazette of the Kingdom, details the nature of the infractions and the corresponding penalties.

The majority of the judges, 58 in total, were disciplined for breaches of professional duty, accounting for 85.3% of the total number of judges penalized. Five judges, or 7.4%, were penalized for breaches of honor and dignity. The remaining judges faced individual cases, including breaches of professional duty, honor, and dignity, and unexplained wealth increases.

The disciplinary actions taken against the judges included mandatory retirement for four, temporary dismissal from work for 12, warnings for 39, reprimands for 12, and suspension from work for one. The judges subject to these disciplinary actions were distributed across different judicial roles, with 56 being trial judges (82.4%) and 12 being public prosecutors (17.6%).

The Supreme Judicial Council received a total of 8,500 complaints over the past year. The majority of these, 3,776 complaints (44.4%), were related to objections to judicial decisions. Other significant categories included complaints about case files, which totaled 1,217 (14.3%). The council referred these complaints to various bodies, including the General Inspectorate for Judicial Affairs, the Ethics Committee, and specialized judicial departments, as well as to the Ministry of Justice, the Public Prosecution, and the Court of Cassation.

The Council's Dispute Resolution Unit registered 20 cases during the past year.

CONTEXT: The disciplinary actions highlight the Saudi judicial system's efforts to maintain integrity and professionalism within the judiciary, addressing issues such as misconduct and unexplained wealth increases among judges.