Razai, Sara Saosan; (2019) The Role and Significance of Judges in the Arab Middle East: An interdisciplinary and empirical study. Doctoral thesis (Ph.D), UCL (University College London).

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Abstract

Abstract Judges and courts play a vital role in the development of law and politics in the countries of the Arab Middle East. But, despite their importance, there is a gap in legal scholarship about the significance and function of judges across the region. The small amount of previous research on Arab judiciaries has focused primarily on formal descriptions of the judicial role, particularly from a comparative perspective with Western judiciaries. This research aims to address this gap in scholarship by: (1) Developing a new typology of judicial systems in the Arab Middle East, reflected in the judicial systems Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Egypt and Jordan; (2) Surveying Arab judges across the region about their role perceptions, attitudes to law and politics and their personal experiences as judges. (3) Profiling Arab judges, based on information on LinkedIn, to assess their educational background and professional experiences prior to appointment. The thesis encompasses three inter-related studies. The first study draws on primary and secondary material to map and create a typology of representative judicial systems in the region. This draws on existing typologies of judicial systems in Western democracies but develops this further by identifying whether there are unique elements to judicial systems in the region. The second study is an online survey of 65 judges from six Arab countries exploring their judicial role. This is believed to be the first-ever survey of Arab judges to explore these issues. The third study profiles the educational and professional experiences of 112 judges based on their profiles obtained from the online professional platform, LinkedIN. The three studies provide for an initial insight into the significance of an important group in the Arab region that has traditionally not been the subject of empirical research. The thesis explores Arab judicial systems and judicial roles through an interdisciplinary prism, drawing on methods found in political science, sociology, social psychology and law. The thesis also explores how the role and significance of Arab courts and judges fit within the wider scholarship on judicial behaviour and role perceptions.

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