1. What is Law?

Introduction
Law is a system of rules that are enforced through social institutions to
govern behavior. Laws can be made by legislatures through legislation
(resulting in statutes), the executive through decrees and regulations, or
judges through binding precedent (normally in common law
jurisdictions).
2. Purpose of Law
There may be numerous purposes of law, some important are as follows:
Satisfaction for victims (i.e. revenge).
Deterrent to discourage others from acting in a way considered
detrimental to society.
To prevent vigilantism and mob justice, often targeting innocent third
parties.
3. The Law of Pakistan
The Law of Pakistan is the law and legal system existing in the Islamic
Republic of Pakistan. Pakistani law is based upon the legal system of
British India; thus ultimately on the common law of England and Wales.

Pakistan as an Islamic republic also has been influenced by Islamic

Sharia law.
4. The Judicial System of Pakistan
The roots of the current judicial system of Pakistan stretch back to the
medieval period and even before. The judicial system that we practice
today has evolved over a long period of time, spanning roughly over a
whole millennium.
The system has passed through several epochs covering the Hindu era,
Muslim period including the Mughal dynasty, British colonial period and
post-independence period. Notwithstanding the successive changes i.e.
one rule/dynasty substituted by the other, which naturally resulted in the
socio-economic and political transformation of the Indian society, the
judicial system generally maintained a steady growth and gradual
advance towards consolidation and improvement/refinement, without
indeed, having to undergo any major disruption or substantial change.
All in all, the system experienced and passed through 3 distinct stages of
historical development, namely, Hindu Kingdom, Muslim Rule and British
Colonial administration. The 4th and current era, commenced with the
partition of India and the establishment of Pakistan as a sovereign and
independent State.
The system, thus, has evolved through a process of reform and
development. This conclusion enjoys near unanimity among historians
and commentators of Indian legal history. During this process of
evolution and growth, the judicial system did receive influences and
inspirations from foreign doctrines/notions and indigenous
norms/practices, both in terms of organizing courts structure and
hierarchy, and adopting procedures/practices in reaching decisions.
Therefore, the present judicial system is not an entirely foreign
transplant, as is commonly alleged, but has acquired an indigenous
flavor and national color. And whereas the system may not fully suit the
genius of our people or meet the local conditions, its continued
application and practice has made it intelligible to the common man. The
very fact that increasing number of people are making.
The Judicial System of Pakistan resort to the courts for the resolution of
their conflicts/disputes indicates that the system enjoys a degree of
legitimacy and acceptance.
Islam and the Legal System
The legal system in Pakistan is based on English common law and Islamic
law. Between 1947 and 1978, Islamic law was largely restricted to the
sphere of personal status issues, such as marriage, inheritance and
divorce. The Islamization of the legal system began in earnest under
General Zia ul Haq (1977-1988). Through a series of presidential decrees,
Zia introduced far reaching changes in Pakistans criminal justice system,
regulated by the Pakistan Penal Code of 1860 and the Code of Criminal
Procedure (1898). He also created a parallel court system, consisting of
Shariat courts, and amended the countrys anti-blasphemy laws. While
most of the Islamic laws he instituted are still on the statute, and some
were reinforced by conservative governments, Pakistans parliament has

recently introduced legal changes aimed at improving the status of

women in the private and public spheres.
Division of Courts
Supreme Court
The Supreme Court is the apex Court of the land, exercising original,
appellate and advisory jurisdiction. It is the Court of ultimate appeal and
therefore the final arbiter of law and the Constitution. Its decisions are
binding on all other courts. The Court consists of a Chief Justice and
other judges, appointed by the President as per procedure laid down in
the Constitution. An Act of Parliament has determined the number of
judges. The number fixed at the moment is Chief Justice and 16 judges.
There is also provision for appointment of acting judges as well as ad hoc
judges in the court. A person with 5 years experience as a Judge of a
High Court or 15 years standing as an advocate of a High Court is eligible
to be appointed as judge of the Supreme Court.
High Courts
There is a High Court in each province and a High Court for the
Islamabad Capital Territory. Each High Court consists of a Chief Justice
and other judges. The strength of Lahore high Court is fixed at 60, High
Court of Sindh at 40, Peshawar High Court at 20, High Court of
Baluchistan at 11 and Islamabad High Court at 7. Qualifications
mentioned for the post of a Judge are, 10 years experience as an
advocate of a High Court or 10 years service as a civil servant including
3 years experience as a District Judge or 10 years experience in a judicial
office.
For the appointment of Judges of High Courts, the practice used to be
that initially the Chief Justice of the concerned High Court prepared list of
candidates which was submitted to the President through the Governor
of the province and Chief Justice of Pakistan. The President finally used to
select judges from the said list. The recommendation of the Chief Justice
of Pakistan and Chief Justice of the High Court were binding on the
President, except for sound reasons to the contrary. The most senior
judge would have legitimate expectancy of being appointed as the Chief
Justice except for concrete and valid reasons, to be recorded by the
President.
District & Sessions Courts
District courts exist in every district of each province, and have civil and
criminal jurisdiction. In each District Headquarters, there are numerous
Additional District & Session Judges who usually preside the courts.
District & Sessions Judge has executive and judicial power all over the
district under his jurisdiction. The Sessions court is also a trial court for
heinous offences such as Murder, Rape, Haraba offences (armed robbery
where specific amount of gold and cash is involved), and is also appellate
court for summary conviction offences and civil suits of lesser value.
Each Town and city now has a court of Additional District & Sessions
judge, which possess the equal authority over, under its jurisdiction.
When hearing criminal cases, it is called the Sessions Court, and when it
hears civil cases, the District Court. Executive matters are brought before
the relevant District & Sessions Judge.

 The High Court of each province has appellate jurisdiction over the
lower courts.
The Supreme Court has exclusive jurisdiction over disputes between
and among provincial governments, and appellate jurisdiction over High
Court decisions.
Federal Shariat Court
The Court consists of 8 Muslim Judges including the Chief Justice
.Procedure for appointment of judges of Federal Shariat Court has been
changed after 18th and 19th amendments as previously such judges
were appointed by the President from amongst the serving or retired
judges of the Supreme Court or a High Court or from amongst persons
possessing the qualifications of a judge of the High Court.
At present, judges of Federal Shariat Court are also appointed through
Judicial Commission which comprises Chief Justice of Pakistan as
Chairperson, four senior most Judges of the Supreme Court, One former
Chief Justice or a retired judge of the Supreme Court appointed by the
Chairperson in consultation with the four member judges for a period of
two years, the Attorney General for Pakistan, the Federal Law Minister,
Chief Justice of Federal Shariat Court and most senior judge of the
Federal Shariat Court.
For appointment of Chief Justice, however, the most senior judge of the
Federal Shariat Court is excluded from the composition of the
Commission. Once the Judicial Commission approves a new name for
appointment as the judge of the Federal Shariat Court, it goes to an Eight
member Parliamentary Committee that has equal representation of the
government and the opposition as well as of two houses. This Committee
has two weeks to review the recommendation after which if the
recommendation is approved, it goes to the Prime Minister who forwards
the same to the President for appointment. The Parliamentary
Committee, for reasons to be recorded, may not confirm the
recommendation by three-fourth majority, in which instance the decision
is forwarded to the Commission through the Prime Minister and the
Commission sends another nomination.
Special Tribunals and Boards
There are numerous special tribunals such as;
Banking Courts
Custom Courts
Drug Courts
Federal Services Tribunal
Provincial Services Tribunals (one for each province)
Income Tax Tribunals
Anti Corruption Courts
Anti Terrorism Courts
Labor Courts
Labor Appellate Tribunal
Environmental Courts
Board of Revenue
Special Magistrate courts
Control of Narcotic Substances (Special Courts)
Consumer Courts
Almost all judges of above mentioned courts and tribunals except last

one are of District & sessions Judges or of having same qualifications.

Besides, there exist revenue courts, operating under the West Pakistan
Land Revenue Act 1967.
The revenue courts may be classified as the Board of Revenue, the
Commissioner, the Collector, the Assistant Collector of the First Grade
and Second Grade. The provincial government that exercises
administrative control over them appoints such officers. Law prescribes
their powers and functions.
Family Courts
The West Pakistan Family Courts Act 1964 governs the jurisdiction of
Family Courts. These courts have exclusive jurisdiction over matters
relating to personal status. Appeals from the Family Courts lie with the
High Court, where the Family Court is presided by a District Judge, an
Additional District Judge, or a person notified by the Government to be
the rank and status of a District Judge or an Additional District Judge and
to the District Court, in any other case.
Every town and city or Tehsil has court of family judge.In some areas,
where it is only Family Court but in most areas Civil Judge Courts have
been granted the powers of Family Court Judges. According to section 17
of the Family Court Act, 1964, the provisions of C.P.C. (Civil Procedure
Code) and Qanun-e-Shahdat Order (Evidence Law) are not applicable
over to Family Court and the same are allowed forming or regulating its
own procedure to decide case expeditiously, properly and in the best
interest and convenience of lady litigants.
Juvenile Courts
Section 4 of the JJSO authorizes the Provincial Government to establish
one or more juvenile courts for any local area within its jurisdiction, in
consultation with the Chief Justice of the high court. Ten years have
passed, and not a single such court has been established; and instead
the High Courts have been conferring status of the juvenile courts on the
existing courts.
The High Court cannot be doing this on their own, and must be
instructed by the provincial governments to do so. In this era of
independent judiciary, the High Courts should stand up against the
governments on this issue and refuse to confer powers on the already
over-burdened courts and instead should insist upon establishing
exclusive juvenile courts.
Section 6 of the JJSO prescribes special procedure for the juvenile courts
which involves issues like not ordinarily taking up any other case on a
day when the case of a child accused is fixed for evidence on such day;
attendance of only specified persons in the court; and dispensing with
the attendance of the child in the trial.
Appointments of Judges
Supreme Court of Pakistan
Prior to 18th Constitutional Amendments, appointments to the Supreme
Court of Pakistan were made by the President of Pakistan, on the
recommendation of the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. This system
bred many allegations of favoritism. Many judges who were appointed

were relatives of other Judges or Government officials.

However, following the Supreme Court's judgment in the Al-Jehad Trust
case, the government's role in judicial appointments was curtailed.
Under the terms of this judgment, the Government and the President's
office were bound to act on the recommendations of the Chief Justice of
Pakistan.
After passage of the 19th Constitutional Amendment in 2010, a new
Judicial Commission and Parliamentary Committee were established for
appointments. The Judicial Commission consists of a total of nine
members: the Chief Justice of Pakistan, four senior judges of the
Supreme Court, a former Chief Justice or judge of the Supreme Court
nominated by the serving Chief Justice in consultation with the four
serving judges of the Supreme Court aforementioned, the Attorney
General of Pakistan, the Federal Minister for Law and Justice and, one
senior advocate nominated by the Pakistan Bar Council. The
Parliamentary Committee confirms or may not confirm the nominee of
the Judicial Commission.
High Courts
In Appointments to the High Courts, the same procedure as in Supreme
Courts appointments is adopted Prior to 18th Constitutional Amendment,
High Court appointments suffered much the same criticisms as those to
the Supreme Court. Future appointments will be made in the same
manner as those to the Supreme Court.
District & Sessions Judges
Additional District & Sessions Judges are appointed by the Provincial High
Courts, from a pool of Lawyers and subordinate judges. To be eligible for
appointment, Lawyers must have ten years' experience as an advocate
with good standing in the respective jurisdiction. They must also pass an
examination conducted by the High Courts. Subordinate judges are
promoted from senior civil judges on a seniority basis.