Morocco Launches Remote Court Hearings Nationwide, Boosting Judicial Efficiency

Mohamed Benabdelkader indicated on Wednesday, before the members of the Justice and Legislation Commission of the first chamber, that "this decision was made in coordination with the Presidency of the Public Prosecutor’s Office, the Higher Council of the Judiciary (CSPJ) and the General Delegation for Prison Administration and Reintegration (DGAPR), so that the courts are equipped in this regard".

The Minister of Justice stressed that a meeting was also held with the bar associations of lawyers, in order to solicit not only their adherence to this measure, but also to ask them to "facilitate the communication process with the litigants in order to make the experience of remote hearings a success".

If the courts have remained almost inactive for a few weeks, it is because the Prosecutor General at the Court of Cassation and President of the Public Prosecutor’s Office had "called for reducing the movements of litigants to the public prosecutor’s office in order to avoid the spread of the new coronavirus". At the time, he had asked citizens who wished to file a complaint to send it to the prosecutors general at the courts of appeal or the courts of first instance, by fax or email or to file it on the website of the Presidency of the Public Prosecutor’s Office.

The Presidency of the Public Prosecutor’s Office has also informed lawyers and all citizens that telephone lines have been set up to allow them to request information for urgent cases or to report crimes.