Disciplinary Liability for Lawyers in Saudi Arabia

Abstract

The enactment of a disciplinary action in Saudi Arabia was aimed at protecting client interests and safeguarding the integrity of the legal profession. This, however, raises the question of the importance of disciplinary liability for lawyers in Saudi Arabia. The next fundamental questions are as follows: What are the procedures for disciplinary action? What authority is in charge of suing for disciplinary action? Which authority considers disciplinary action? What penalties are imposed during disciplinary action? In what ways can disciplinary-action decisions be appealed? The quintessence of this dissertation is to address the abovementioned issues. First, this dissertation focuses on the legal profession in Saudi Arabia by comparing it with that of Kuwait and the UAE. Second, the dissertation argues what disciplinary liability is and how it should be carried out. As a consequence, it asserts that disciplinary action ought to retain a vital role in regulating violations of the duties and obligations of the legal profession. After demonstrating the need for strengthening disciplinary liability in Saudi Arabia, the dissertation ventures into the explication of disciplinary-action articles in the Code of Law Practice that was issued in 2001. As such, its major focus is on Articles 29–37. These explicate the definition of disciplinary liability, disciplinary procedures, disciplinary-liability punishments, and how to appeal a disciplinary-liability decision. In view of the unique conclusions made in the dissertation, a few recommendations for the future are made.