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Jason Gluck, USIP                   

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(Erbil, Iraq) -- Officials from the Higher Judicial Council (the supreme federal judicial authority) and the Kurdistan Judicial Council (the supreme regional judicial authority) agreed on the need for increased coordination between their respective authorities and announced the creation of a Joint Coordination Committee during a conference organized by the United States Institute of Peace (USIP) and the chief implementing partner for USIP’s Rule of Law Program in Iraq, the International Institute for the Rule of Law (IIRL). The conference, entitled Judicial Federalism in Iraq and conducted in Erbil, Iraq on March 28 & 29, 2009, focused on increasing coordination and harmonization between the federal and regional judiciaries in light of Iraqi federalism.

For the first time, high-ranking judicial officials from Baghdad and the Kurdistan region were joined by representatives of the parliaments, executive authorities, federal and regional bar associations, and international experts to discuss and deliberate the nascent and evolving relationship between the two judicial authorities. “The conference highlighted the need to increase access to justice for residents of Kurdistan by creating a mechanism to resolve cases arising in the region but falling under federal jurisdiction,” according to IIRL’s Executive Director, Sermid Al-Sarraf. He further elaborated that, “other emerging issues discussed included harmonizing and refining the federal and regional rules of procedure to take into account challenges created by Iraq’s federal structure, a review of administrative matters concerning judicial training, hiring, promotions, and transfers, and the implications of the possible future creation of additional regions for Iraq’s judiciary.” The Chief Justice of the Iraq Federal Supreme Court, Madhat al-Mahmood, personally announced the formation of the Committee and thanked USIP and IIRL for their role in its formation. “This has been the most important conference I have attended. It represents a significant departure from other efforts, in that its substance was technical and relevant and its outcomes concrete. This is a contribution in the service of justice for the Iraqi people.”

Immediately following the conference, the Higher Judicial Council issued Judicial Order 257 of March 31, 2009, naming the federal and regional representatives to the Joint Committee and tasking them with drafting a paper to address and resolve the “recommendations endorsed by the Conference on Judicial Federalism held in Erbil on March 28–29, 2009 under the sponsorship of the United States Institute of Peace and the International Institute for the Rule of Law.” The Joint Committee is to produce this paper to the Presidents of the federal and regional judicial councils within 15 days of its first meeting. Judicial officials had previously indicated the first meeting would take place in Baghdad within a month of the conference. Among the tasks of the Committee will be fleshing out a model for the federal judiciary in the regions, creating a mechanism to ensure the effective enforcement of judgments in other jurisdictions, and augmenting the existing criminal and civil procedure codes with mechanisms to address conflict of laws and jurisdictional disputes.

According to USIP Senior Rule of Law Advisor Jason Gluck, resolving these issues will be critical to the re-establishment of a sustainable judicial system in Iraq. “Few countries have emerged from the type of conflict Iraq has experienced with a judiciary as independent, capable, and robust as Iraq enjoys today. At the same time, Iraq’s new federal structure creates tensions and challenges that require new institutional relationships and procedures. The challenge for Iraq’s judiciary going forward will be to build on this conference and continue this critical reform. The Joint Committee formed at this conference can play a key role in that effort.” The Judicial Federalism in Iraq conference is one component of USIP’s ongoing efforts to support and promote the rule of law in Iraq. Other USIP Rule of Law Program projects in Iraq include supporting Iraq’s constitutional review process, assisting the Government of Iraq in formulating and implementing strategies to resolve property issues resulting from displacement and return, supporting public dialogues on transitional justice mechanisms, and promoting judicial independence.

The International Institute for the Rule of Law (IIRL) is a registered non-profit, non-governmental organization in Iraq with offices in Baghdad and an affiliate in Los Angeles, California, which receives international support to implement Rule of Law programs in Iraq. Its goals are to bolster judicial independence and support efforts to re-establish the Rule of Law in Iraq by building internal capacity and providing technical legal assistance for institutional, legal and constitutional reform.

The United States Institute of Peace is an independent, nonpartisan institution established and funded by Congress. Its goals are to help prevent and resolve violent international conflicts, promote post-conflict stability and development, and increase conflict management capacity, tools, and intellectual capital worldwide. The Institute does this by empowering others with knowledge, skills, and resources, as well as by directly engaging in peacebuilding efforts around the globe.