According to a report by The News on Monday, a panel of judges, formed under the Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Act of 2023, has resolved to schedule civil and criminal cases based on a "first come first served" principle. The decision was made during a meeting led by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa. Additionally, the committee determined that petitions filed under Article 184(3) would be scheduled in the court after a thorough review.
The committee plans to reconvene for its next meeting on January 4, 2024. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court registrar has provided a schedule outlining the availability of judges in Islamabad and branch registries during the winter vacation from December 18 to December 29, 2023.
Following the directives of the committee's fourth meeting under Section 2 of the SC (Practice and Procedure) Act of 2023, the registrar/secretary shared the judges' availability schedule for the winter vacation. The court roster, approved during the committee's fifth meeting, includes a three-member bench at the principal seat in Islamabad and two-member benches at the Quetta and Karachi registries.
Moreover, the committee decided to abbreviate a civil petition for leave to appeal as CPLA and a constitutional petition under Article 184(3) as CP. The office was instructed to designate, assign, and abbreviate these matters while informing the advocates of the Supreme Court and Advocates on Record (AORs). The draft of Procedure Rules will be shared with committee members for discussion in the next meeting scheduled for January 4, 2024.
