The Judiciary of Bahrain is the court system of Bahrain. It is divided into three branches: the Civil Law Courts, the Criminal Law Courts and the Shari'a Law Courts. The Civil Law Courts deal with all commercial, civil, as well disputes related to the personal status of non-Muslims. The Shari’a Law Courts have jurisdiction over all issues related to the personal status of Muslims. Judges of the middle and lower courts are nominated by the Bahrain Supreme judicial council and appointed by decree by the king of Bahrain. The Supreme Judicial Council, chaired by the King, appoints the members of the Constitutional Court. To secure renewal of these contracts, judges may be prone to consider it necessary to take decisions not unfavourable to the wishes or interests of the Government.
History
The first regular court in Bahrain was established in 1922. The judiciary was divided into a civil judiciary and a Shariat judiciary.
The Court of Cassation was established in 1989 as a supreme court of appeal. It serves as the final court of appeal for all civil, commercial, and criminal matters. The judges for the court are appointed and removed by royal decree. The current Chief Justice of Bahrain and president of the Court of Cassation is Khalifa bin Rashid Al Khalifa, a cousin of King Hamad and the prime minister, and a member of the Al Khalifa ruling family of Bahrain.
National Safety Court
The National Safety Court is a special military court that was set up in March 2011 to try protesters, opposition leaders, rights activists, and people who supported or are perceived as supporting the Bahraini uprising. A military judge presides over the court, along with two civilian judges, all of them appointed by the Bahrain Defence Force commander-in-chief, Marshal Khalifa bin Ahmed Al Khalifa, a cousin of King Hamad and the prime minister, and a member of the Al Khalifa royal family. The cases are prosecuted by the military public prosecutor Colonel Yousef Rashid Flaifel. The National Safety Court has been heavily criticized by international human rights organizations for trying civilians in a military court and for the lack of transparency and due process. Human Rights Watch has described the court as a "travesty of justice", while Amnesty International has described it as a "sham" and "a parody of justice." In June 2011, King Hamad announced that all trials related to the protests would be transferred from the National Safety Court to the normal civilian courts. However he backtracked on August 18 issuing a decree which makes it clear that the new measures do not apply to all arrested protesters.
