Saudi Justice Ministry announces rise in registered lawyers

In 2019, the Justice Ministry has already issued 774 licenses for legal practices, 619 for male lawyers and 155 for female lawyers. (Shutterstock)

• Saudi Arabia still needs many more male, female lawyers, say experts

JEDDAH: The Ministry of Justice has announced that the total number of lawyers registered with the ministry has reached 6,270, including 487 female lawyers.
In 2019, the ministry has already issued 774 licenses for legal practices, 619 for male lawyers and 155 for female lawyers.
Local lawyers seem to think that the Kingdom need more practitioners in the field — especially when it comes to the number of women.
Law firm owner and lawyer, Majed Garoub, told Arab News: “If we look at the population number or the number of cases before the courts, namely the specialized courts at the Ministry of Justice, the administrative courts in the Ombudsman and more than 100 judicial commissions found in various ministries and governmental bodies, and compare these two numbers with the number of companies and institutions and also with the size of the economy, we realize that the number of lawyers is insufficient to meet and cater for these business needs.”
Garoub believes Saudi Arabia still needs many more male and female lawyers. “It is totally normal for the number of female lawyers to make up a third or half of the number of attorneys licensed by the Ministry of Justice or other competent entities. But unfortunately, in reality the number of reviewers, agents and unauthorized practitioners known in the local parlance as “daawajiyah,” brings the number of licensed lawyers to approximately 6,300 female and male lawyers (in total). This very large number of lawyers cannot allow law firms to operate according to decent and professional work methodologies and mechanisms that are relied on to achieve justice in partnership with the judicial system.”
He affirmed the importance of female lawyers, and not just because they can make other women feel more comfortable in a court of law. “The presence of women in the legal sector is vital, essential and is as important as any axis of life in which women ought to be present, beside men, because they have their own characteristics, potentials and ability to work and succeed in the legal profession as well as in different occupations and tasks. Hence, this represents a natural and fair right that need to be maintained, supported and respected.”
He believes that allocating only personal lawsuits to women is wrong. “Women can work on all kinds of lawsuits, not only personal status lawsuits.”
Lawyer Dimah Al-Sarif, who writes Arab News’ column The Case, said: “I believe that the increasing number of female lawyers has contributed greatly to women’s empowerment and spreading awareness for females in general.”
But Al-Sharif believes that these numbers aren’t enough. “Women have proven their worth in many fields. Therefore, I would like to invite the women who aspire to change and develop to take this challenging path.”
Al-Sharif’s encouragement comes at an opportune moment, as the Ministry of Justice has announced that they are hiring fresh graduates in the fields of legal disciplines, Arabic, administrative and social, accounting, documents and archives. The application became accessible on their website on May 8.