2019-04-07

Dura

West Bank

The head and members of the High Judicial Council,

Subject: Imposing Fees Without legal Basis

MUSAWA- The Palestinian Center for the Independence of the Judiciary and the Legal Profession extends its warmest greetings to your excellences, noting that the executive judge of ……… court had decided to impose a fee of 1 Jordanian Dinar on the request for implementation of warrants that shall be paid by both the defendant and the body requiring the action. Regardless of the amount of the fee, the mentioned decision contradicts with the Basic Law, which clearly provided for that fees shall be imposed on litigants only by law, and that No one may be totally or partially exempted, except in circumstances prescribed by law, and clearly states that no power is given to neither the judge nor the judicial authority to impose fees on the litigants, not to mention that there is no relation between the imposed fees and the habeas corpus proceedings, noting to the lawyers’ adherence to implementing this decision, which entails charging litigants with unlawful fees. However, the lawyers of Dura city stated that they are compelled to pay the mentioned fees in adherence to the judge’s decision.  

MUSAWA believes that imposed such fees represents a breach of the established legal principles, and of article (7) of the planning the Budget & Financial Affairs Act No (7) of 1998, and article 88 of the basic law, which both provide for “Public taxes and duties shall be imposed, amended and repealed only by law”, Pointing out that the judicial post shall not be treated as a service, thus, we ask your excellences to consider our memo, to take the needed legal action in its regard, to ensure a rescission of the judge’s decision, to stop imposing and collecting fees by judicial orders, and to notify Dura’s executive judge of the mentioned instructions, hoping you keep us updated with the legal actions taken by your side. 

With All Due Respect,

Issued on 7/4/2019

Legal Monitoring Officer

Angham Mansour