Traders asked to settle business-related disputes through MICADR

KARACHI: Managing Director of Musaliha International Centre for Arbitration and Dispute Resolution (MICADR), former Justice Arif Hussain Khilji has advised the business community to settle all their business-related and other disputes through excellent arbitration and mediation services being provided by MICADR which was Pakistan’s first high court and government recognized private ADR Centre with an overall success rate of more than 70 percent.

Speaking at a meeting of Karachi Chamber of Commerce & Industry (KCCI), MD MICADR identified delays in processing of cases in the judicial system as the “biggest hurdle,” hindering local and foreign investment in Pakistan where the legal proceeding could take up to 25 years to conclude, hence, the business community should look into the possibility of resolving their disputes without a trial through MICADR which not only offers cost-effective and expedient mediations but also ensures enforceability of the decisions.

Members of MICADR Board of Governors namely former judge High Court Justice Zafar Sherwani, former president KCCI Majyd Aziz and former senior vice president FPCCI Muhammad Suleman Chawla along with Co-Founder & Senior Manager MICADR Sarha Rasheed, Senior Vice President KCCI Altaf A Ghaffar, Vice President Tanveer Ahmed Barry, former president KCCI Junaid Makda and KCCI Managing Committee Members also attended the meeting.

Justice Khilji noted that many countries around the world have adopted out of court settlement through arbitrations with Singapore taking the lead while Türkiye has resolved 3 million cases through mediation and Chinese court referred 5.1 million cases to court-recognised mediation centres. The concept of mediation is relatively new in Pakistan but it has started picking up some pace since 2022 when the High Court of Sindh recognised MICADR as approved Alternate Dispute Resolution Centre, hence, the business community must prefer MICADR for arbitration which was an easier and quicker way to get the disputes resolved.

Co-Founder & Senior Manager MICADR Sarha Rasheed, while delivering a presentation to raise awareness about the services offered by MICADR, stated that a total of 2.1 million cases were pending in Pakistani courts to be heard by 3,100 judges while the average life span of a civil suit from the day of institution was more than 15 years which terribly hinders access to justice for many businesses and investors.

She informed that MICADR, with its offices situated in Karachi and Islamabad, deals with several types of cases including landlord and tenant disputes, commercial disputes, insurance disputes, unfair contract terms, labor disputes, mortgage default and foreclosure, family disputes and disputes on possession of immovable property etc.

Highlighting MICADR’s contributions to ADR ecosystem, she informed that more than 130 judges, 100 plus accredited mediators and more than 800 mediation advocates have been trained so far, besides enabling legislation in Gilgit-Baltistan and raising awareness amongst state regulators.

Speaking on the occasion, Senior Vice President KCCI Altaf A Ghaffar, while highly appreciating the services offered by MICADR, stated that keeping in view Pakistan’s 130th ranking out of 142 in the World Justice Project’s Rule of Law Index 2023, it was very critical to bring judicial reforms for improving legal and judicial system in the country to provide much needed relief to the masses.

He was of the view that Alternative Dispute Resolution methods were effective ways to ease pressure on the existing courts, improve access to justice and enhance the overall socioeconomic well-being of people.

“It is imperative to utilise ADR platforms efficiently and establish connections with skilled mediators and arbitrators specializing in relevant fields which would improve ease of doing business, particularly for small businesses seeking out-of-court settlements.”

He also extended full support and cooperation to MICADR for all its endeavors focused on creating an enabling business environment.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2024