The Board of Grievances is an independent administrative judiciary authority, directly affiliated with the King of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. It aims to establish justice and effective judicial oversight over administrative actions through cases presented before it, ensuring the proper application of laws and regulations and enabling the aggrieved party to seek redress, thus safeguarding rights, applying legal judgments, and achieving justice while addressing grievances.
Establishment of the Board of Grievances
The Board of Grievances was founded under the name Grievance Unit on March 17, 1954, four months after King Saud Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud assumed the throne. The designation was later changed to its current designation, the Board of Grievances, after more than a year since its establishment, on May 9, 1955.
The first head of the board was Prince Musaid Bin Abdulrahman Bin Faisal Al Saud. Mohammed al-Jubeir is regarded as having the longest tenure as the head of the board, serving for eighteen years (1975-1993).
Origins and development of the Board of Grievances
The Board of Grievances went through five stages during its establishment and development as follows:
First stage: The establishment of the Grievances Unit within the Council of Ministers on March 17, 1954. It was intended to form a General Directorate named the Board of Grievances, overseen by a president appointed by a Royal Decree.
Second stage: A Royal Decree was issued on May 9, 1955, to establish an independent entity called the Board of Grievances, to be managed by a president with the rank of a minister, appointed by a Royal Decree.
Third stage: On May 10, 1982, a Royal Decree established the Board of Grievances as an independent judicial body directly linked to the King. It was given authority over administrative, disciplinary, criminal, commercial, and foreign judgment execution cases, in addition to reviewing matters referred to it by the Council of Ministers.
Fourth stage: The announcement of the largest national project to redefine the framework of administrative justice in the Kingdom with the issuance of the Board of Grievances Law and its executive regulations by a Royal Decree on October 1, 2007. The Law of Procedure before the Board of Grievances was issued on November 25, 2013.
Fifth and current stage: On March 22, 2016, the agreements were signed to transfer the jurisdiction of criminal and commercial courts previously under the Board of Grievances to the General Judiciary. Thus, the Board of Grievances became an independent administrative judicial authority responsible for effective judicial oversight over the actions of the administrative authority in accordance with its law.
Organization of the Board of Grievances
The main headquarters of the Board of Grievances is located in the capital city of Riyadh. It is an independent administrative judiciary body directly affiliated with the king. The judiciary of the Board and its judges are entitled to the guarantees stipulated in the Saudi Law of the Judiciary, and they adhere to the duties outlined therein.
Jurisdictions of the Courts of the Board of Grievances
The courts of the Board of Grievances are divided into three sections based on their jurisdiction: the High Administrative Court, the Administrative Appeal Courts, and the Administrative Courts. The High Administrative Court is responsible for reviewing objections to judgments issued by the Administrative Appeal Courts. The Administrative Courts handle cases brought before them and then refer them to the Court of Appeals.
The courts of the Board of Grievances are located in several cities and provinces throughout the Kingdom, totaling around twenty-five courts. This includes eighteen Administrative Courts, seven Courts of Administrative Appeals, and one branch of the High Administrative Court located in the city of Riyadh.
Services of the Board of Grievances
The Board of Grievances provides a range of services through its electronic platforms, which include tracking the progress of administrative claims and cases through the Moen electronic platform. Additionally, it accepts requests for cooperative training from university graduates through the Khabeer platform. The board also publishes a periodic journal titled Diwan al-Mazalim, which focuses on publishing peer-reviewed scientific research in the fields of jurisprudence, law, and administrative justice.
On May 11, 2022, the President of the Board of Grievances, who also serves as the President of the Administrative Judiciary Council, directed the formation of a specialized task force to study the transformation of the courts of the Board of Grievances into digital courts. These digital courts would handle all their work and complete judicial transactions digitally.
In addition, the President of the Board of Grievances issued a decision on July 2, 2022, adopting remote judicial work guidelines as a new method of operation in the courts of the Board of Grievances. After the Administrative Judicial Council, headed by the President of the Board of Grievances, approved the principle of remote work in judicial proceedings.
On August 10, 2022, a set of principles established by the High Administrative Court for the years 2018, 2019, and 2020 was inaugurated. These principles, totaling 958 pages in two volumes, marked a significant step in the court's jurisdiction since it began its activities in 2018, completing the activation of the law of Procedure before the Board of Grievances
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