Kathleen Ridolfo
RFE/RL Iraq Report, Vol. 6, No. 42
October 9, 2003

The reestablished Iraqi Council of Judges began work in Baghdad on Oct. 4, according to a press release by the CPA in Iraq dated the same day (www.cpa-iraq.org). The council was first established in 1963 to supervise Iraqi’s judicial and prosecutorial systems. The former Hussein regime abolished it however, in 1979. The council will operate independent of the Iraqi Justice Ministry, and will “investigate allegations of professional misconduct and incompetence, take necessary disciplinary or administrative actions and nominate lawyers to fill judicial and prosecutorial vacancies,” the press release stated. “The Council of Judges assures the independence of the judiciary, away from the interference by any authority in the judicial or prosecutorial affairs…this council is based on democracy,” Iraqi Supreme Court Chief Justice and President of the Council of Judges Mithat al-Mahmud was quoted as saying. Other members to the council include the deputy chief justices of the Supreme Court, the directors-general of the State Council Assembly, the Office of Public Prosecution, the Legal Supervision Office, and presidents of the appellate courts.