Swift Justice Reform: Chief Justice pursues focused interventions to close equity gaps in the judicial system
Chief Justice Yahya Afridi Launches State-Funded Legal Aid Initiative
In a significant move towards an inclusive and fair judicial system, Chief Justice Yahya Afridi has launched a state-funded legal aid initiative. This initiative aims to provide free legal representation to financially distressed litigants across all levels of Pakistan’s judiciary.
The Law and Justice Commission of Pakistan (LJCP) is leading this initiative, which stations senior representatives in each province and High Court to coordinate with district Bar Associations, oversee implementation, and raise awareness to enhance effectiveness at grassroots levels.
Key features of the initiative include financial assistance of up to Rs50,000 per case provided through District Legal Empowerment Committees. These committees nominate qualified lawyers for cases in district courts, high courts, and the Supreme Court. Since 2012, this legal aid program has disbursed around Rs115 million to aid over 7,000 underprivileged litigants, helping prevent delays caused by inability to afford counsel.
Delivery of timely, effective justice is considered a moral imperative by Chief Justice Yahya Afridi. He has emphasized the need for efficient utilization of government support to Bar Associations and involvement of legal professionals in judicial reforms to improve justice delivery, especially in remote districts facing infrastructure challenges.
The initiative was discussed in a high-level meeting attended by various high-ranking officials, including Chief Justice Peshawar High Court SM Attique Shah, Vice Chairman Pakistan Bar Council Tahir Warraich, Vice Chairman Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Bar Council Ahmed Farooq Khattak, and a representative from the Ministry of Law and Justice, Federal Government.
In addition, the Chief Justice has invited Bar Associations to submit development proposals for consideration by District Development Committees. He has also encouraged Bar Associations to benefit from the Continuing Legal Education (CLE) programmes offered by the Federal Judicial Academy (FJA).
Moreover, the Commission has decided to post senior-level representatives in every province, who will be based in the high courts and serve as liaisons with district bar associations. These officers will raise awareness of justice sector initiatives, identify local priorities, and supervise grassroots reforms.
Chief Justice Afridi has also asked the bars to nominate competent lawyers to the relevant judges for this new legal aid initiative. He has called on provincial line departments to remain actively engaged with designated officers to ensure timely implementation of projects proposed by the District Committees.
The meeting was also attended by registrars, secretaries, and directors from the Supreme Court, Peshawar High Court, Law and Justice Commission of Pakistan, KP Judicial Academy, and other government departments. Representatives from federal and provincial departments are now part of the process to accelerate execution and prevent resource duplication.
This new legal aid initiative represents a significant advancement towards an inclusive and fair judicial system by bridging financial gaps that hinder access to legal representation for the underprivileged.
- The state-funded legal aid initiative, launched by Chief Justice Yahya Afridi, could potentially be expanded to address financial gaps in access to legal representation in other areas of law, such as finance or politics, if additional funds and policy-and-legislation support are secured.
- The ongoing legal aid initiative, which has been successful in providing free legal representation to financially distressed litigants across Pakistan's judiciary, could aid underprivileged individuals in navigating general-news related legal matters, further fostering an inclusive and fair judicial system.
