Al-Watan newspaper

IN all states of America, lawyers are required to undergo regular training for a certain amount of hours each year under a program called Continuing Legal Education (CLE). This training enables lawyers to be aware of changes to the law and is necessary to ensure lawyers meet a certain level of expertise. Unfortunately, in Saudi Arabia, the legal qualification and training of government practitioners, from consultants to researchers and even judges, is not at the required level.

There was a time when law and its teaching was forbidden in the Kingdom. It was thanks to the late Minister Ghazi Al-Gosaibi that law was taught at the Institute of Management. It is unclear what the required subjects are that are taught. However, it is said that at one of the universities, half of the subjects taught in a law course relate to public administration.

This has directly affected the way we approach law. Due to modernity, developments in law and the new judiciary, new terms have entered the Saudi legal lexicon.

We need certain mechanisms to raise standards. I propose that the Shoura Council suggests the idea of introducing a governmental license for legal practitioners that would consist of certain hours of yearly training that may be optional according to the wishes of the practitioner. This would raise the level of expertise; the person who does not train, then his or her governmental license could be withdrawn.

As long as we are forward thinking in the way we practice law in this country, new legal terminologies would be introduced and for which our law experts would need to be trained for. This is especially the case with students of Shariah who sometimes practice law but are not specialists. Moreover, what they have studied does not fit the market requirements; this is especially the case with sections of law that are not in sync with current and future expectations.

Many people may disagree with me about forcing members of the legal profession to undergo this kind of training because they are academics and not practitioners. The reality, however, is different. Some have been given jobs through expert firms to practice law, while others practice law along with lecturing on the subject.

In addition to raising the level of their training, they would be able to teach law, something that would immensely benefit them. Legal and academic law must be linked to the practical reality. We should be allowed to practice law if we want expert legal practitioners who meet the labor market.