United States Supports the Rule of Law in Lebanon through Renovation of the Beirut Enforcement Court

On March 2, 2010, U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon Michele J. Sison and United States Agency for International Development (USAID)/Lebanon Mission Director Denise A. Herbol attended the opening ceremony of the renovated Beirut Enforcement Court with Minister of Justice Ibrahim Najjar and members of the High Judicial Council. The United States granted US $620,000 to provide a new queuing system to streamline the process for accepting and handling requests, training workshops on customer service and courtroom management for judges and court clerks, a modern case filing system, information technology equipment and new office furniture.

The U.S. government partnered with the National Center for State Courts (NCSC) to implement the court renovation and rehabilitation project. This is just one part of the $8.2 million, USAID-funded “Strengthening the Independence of the Judiciary and Citizen Access to Justice” program, which aims to support the Ministry of Justice to increase judicial independence, provide greater access to justice, improve court administration, and encourage long-term strategic planning for the judiciary.

Ambassador Sison emphasized the importance of this project in supporting the Ministry of Justice in improving the overall efficiency of the court, enabling court staff to carry out needed upgrades, and to provide the public with better access to the justice system.