Parliament to convene for extraordinary session after eid

AMMAN — A Royal decree was issued, convening the Parliament for an extraordinary session meeting as of Tuesday, July 4, to endorse various draft laws, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. 

Under the Constitution, lawmakers can only debate bills that are listed in the Royal Decree during extraordinary sessions.

The bills for the extraordinary session, as listed in the decree,  focus on judicial reform. They included a bill amending the Judicial Independence Law; a draft law amending the Formation of Civil Courts; a draft law on magistrate courts; a draft law amending the Civil Procedure Law; a draft law amending the Penal Code; a bill amending the Criminal Court Law; a draft law amending the Criminal Procedure Law; a draft law amending the Evidence Law; a draft law amending the State Lawsuit Management; a bill amending the Judicial Execution Law; an amended draft arbitration law; a draft law amending the Mediation Law for Settling Civil Disputes; a draft law on movable assets as debt guarantees; a draft law amending the Companies Law, a draft law amending the Land Registration Fee Law; and a bill amending the supervision and inspection of economic activities law.

The Royal Committee for Developing the Judiciary and Enhancing the Rule of Law, set up by His Majesty King Abdullah in October 2016, has come up with 49 suggestions to revamp the legislative authority, some of which have been key demands by advocacy groups and activists for decades.

The implementation of the plan involves changes to, or the introduction of 16 pieces of legislation, which will be the focus of the upcoming parliamentary session. 

A Royal Decree was issued on April 30, proroguing the first ordinary session of the two Chambers of Parliament as of May 7.

Under Article 34 of the Constitution, the King has the power to convene, inaugurate, adjourn, and prorogue the Parliament.

His Majesty King Abdullah inaugurated the 18th Parliament’s first ordinary session on November 11 with a Speech from the Throne.

The laws enacted by the sitting Parliament that went into effect included laws amending the tourism, public health and collection of state funds laws. 

They also included pieces of legislation to protect the environment and consumers, a law governing the work of the Energy and Minerals Regulatory Commission and the National Human Rights Centre and another on national documents, among others.