Bangladesh’s government has set a one-year goal to reduce a 4.5 million-case court backlog to between 2 million and 2.5 million through mediation, arbitration and out-of-court negotiations.
Officials plan to identify disputes early in the trial process that could be settled by lawyers for both sides or referred to mediators working through district legal aid offices.
A law ministry representative said the government believes it can cut pending cases to 2 million within a year by expanding negotiated settlements and mediation.
Supreme Court lawyer Kazi Zahed Iqbal said the target is possible if authorities take proper initiatives and all parties cooperate.
“With an all-out effort and cooperation from all parties, through arbitration and other mechanisms, many cases can be resolved very quickly,” Iqbal said.
He said sustained use of those methods could eventually bring the backlog to a tolerable level.