BizCLIR

Although the government has some efforts underway to reform various aspects of its judicial system, strengthening Cambodia’s courts still requires a significant investment of time, resources, and will. Most courthouses throughout the country, including the only Appeals Court, are in a state of disrepair. Computers are rare and docketing and filing is disorganized and done by hand. Decisions are almost never published. Court clerks are underpaid and lack training in modern court administration techniques. Judges, though relatively well paid, do not have sufficient access to new laws and continuing education on the emerging commercial law framework. Lawyers complain of not being notified of critical court dates and of being denied access to relevant case files. These deficiencies occur against a backdrop of legal informality whereby negotiations between parties, judges, and clerks may have as much or more meaning than case documents. As summarized by one private lawyer, “if you know the law, but not the courts, you don’t know much.”

Without a functioning court administration system, the courts are unable to preserve a comprehensive case record, provide parties with ready access to case documents, or facilitate an efficient appeals process. The absence of clear case documentation also facilitates corruption, which private sector and non-government organizations (NGO) observers report to be endemic in the courts and in which court clerks reportedly play a prominent role. It is possible for a party to ultimately obtain a decision from the courts that is enforceable. But this generally comes at such a great cost of time, money, and frustration that almost all private sector representatives the diagnostic team consulted said they would seek to use the court system only as a last resort. Significant additional resources and training, along with intensified political commitment to reform, are needed for there to be marked improvement in court administration.