The Supreme Court has issued a comprehensive set of guidelines aimed at improving the quality of pleadings, ensuring uniformity, and strengthening the administration of civil justice at trial courts across Pakistan.
In a 26-page judgment authored by Justice Shahid Bilal Hassan, the apex court stressed the need to incorporate these principles into civil procedure and legal drafting courses at law colleges to better prepare future lawyers.
The ruling came during proceedings on a review petition filed by Fazeelat Nasreen and others in a decades-old property dispute.
A two-member bench comprising Justice Hassan and Justice Shakeel Ahmad accepted the review petition and set aside the Supreme Court’s April 26, 2023, judgment.
The court observed that the original suit was barred by limitation and held that the relevant high court had exceeded its revisional jurisdiction by overturning concurrent findings of lower courts.
Highlighting persistent procedural flaws in civil pleadings, the Supreme Court directed trial courts to thoroughly examine plaints for compliance with the Civil Procedure Code (CPC) 1908, including jurisdiction, limitation, proper verification, court fees, and legal representation of minors.
The guidelines also require written statements to be filed within 30 days in most cases and accompanied by all relevant documents relied upon by the defendant.
Additionally, the Supreme Court suggested that bar councils develop standardized templates for pleadings and written statements to improve legal drafting standards while maintaining case-specific legal analysis.
Separately, Chief Justice of Pakistan Yahya Afridi reaffirmed the judiciary’s commitment to transparency and institutional quality through specialized in-house training on procurement rules and quality management systems.
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