Morocco's Legal system (Weaknesses)
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Morocco’s Legal System (Weaknesses)
Morocco is located in Northern Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea, between Algeria and Western Sahara.
Its population is 33,757,175 consisting of a 98.7% Muslim religion (CIA.gov). Morocco’s government type is constitutional monarchy. It has a dual legal system consisting of secular courts based on French legal tradition, and courts based on Jewish and Islamic Traditions (nationsencyclopedia). The secular system includes communal and district courts, courts of first instance, appellate courts, and a Supreme Court. There are five division chambers in Morocco’s Supreme Court, the divisions include; criminal, correctional (civil) appeals, social, administrative, and constitutional. Officials may be tried in the special court of justice on charges raised by a two-thirds majority of the full Majlis. There is also a military court for cases that involve military personnel and occasionally matters pertaining to a state security. The supreme council of the Judiciary regulates the courts and is presided over by the King of Morocco (King Mohamed VI). The way the judges are appointed their position is through the advice of the council. Judges in the secular system are university-trained lawyers. Since 1965 only Moroccans are able to be appointed as judges. Arabic is the official language of the courts system (nationsencyclopedia). Morocco’s legal system holds weaknesses towards businesses. Some of their weaknesses are that they suffer from weak trade freedom, fiscal freedom, financial freedom, labor freedom, property rights, and freedom form corruption. The average tariff rate is high, and bureaucratic practices are opaque. The judiciary and the financial sector are inefficient and subject to substantial corruption (at least in the courts) and significant political interference from the king. The labor market is highly restrictive and is amongst the 20th least free in the world. Trade freedom is at 51%, fiscal freedom 75.5%, freedom from government 83.3%, investment freedom 70%, financial freedom 40%, property rights at 30%, freedom from corruption 32%, labor freedom 41.9 %( heritage). With freedom from corruption only at 32% this is a major problem toward businesses. There have been substantial efforts over the past few years to modernize Morocco’s legal and regulatory framework, aiming at establishing a more business friendly environment. Such efforts have been motivated in large measure by the need to bring Morocco’s legal system up to par in light of the 1997 Association agreement with the European Union. More recently, attention has turned to another key determinant of efficiently and effectiveness of the legal and regulatory framework of the functioning of the judiciary. The judiciary has long been criticized by all stakeholders in morocco, particularly with regards to business related litigation. As I mentioned before with freedom from corruption at 32%, corruption is still perceived as significant. Morocco ranks 78th out of 158 countries in transparency international’s corruption perceptions index for 2005(heritage). The Moroccan policy-makers now fully understand and recognize the pressing need to improve the functions of the judiciary, and significant reform efforts are already underway.
References
www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-fact book/index.html
www.heritage.org/research/features/index/country.cfm?id=Morocco
Www.wds.worldbank.org
