Nepal Judiciary Crisis Experts Urge Enhanced Mediation & ADR to Reduce Court Backlog
17th November 2025, Kathmandu
Legal experts, including Supreme Court Justices and the Nepal Bar Association, have called for the immediate and effective adoption of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) methods, particularly mediation and conciliation, to alleviate the judicial burden following the recent unprecedented physical attack on the judiciary.
Nepal Judiciary Crisis Experts
The consensus was reached during a seminar hosted by the Nepal International ADR Center (NIAC), where participants stressed that ADR is indispensable for restoring justice delivery, especially for cases where essential judicial records were destroyed.
The Path to Justice: Prioritizing Mediation in Nepalese Courts
The destruction of important case files has brought urgency to streamlining justice processes. Key speakers at the seminar emphasized the following:
Equal Importance of Methods: Supreme Court Justice Kumar Regmi, who also chairs the Mediation Council, noted that both mediation and conciliation are essential methods. He stressed the need for simultaneous implementation of both, as conciliation has not yet yielded the expected results.
Capacity Development: Supreme Court Justice Meghraj Pokharel highlighted the continuous need for training and capacity development for mediators and conciliators.
Restoring the Rule of Law: Prof. Dr. Bijaya Prasad Mishra, President of the Nepal Bar Association, condemned the court attack as an assault on the rule of law. He affirmed that the “true path to justice and cooperation lies in mediation and conciliation.”
Legal Basis for Court-Referred Mediation: Advocate Nurhari Khatri pointed out the legal provision for resolving stranded commercial civil cases through court-referred mediation, citing Section 39²⁰ of the Mediation Act 2055 and various international precedents.
Future Focus: Establishment of the Himalayan ADR Academy
In a major forward-looking decision, the NIAC assembly approved the proposal to establish the Himalayan ADR Academy.
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Objective: The Academy will focus on promoting ADR methods while simultaneously drawing global attention to the unique legal and social challenges faced by Himalayan regions, notably those concerning climate change.
International Collaboration: To kickstart this effort, the assembly endorsed a plan to host a major international ADR conference in Nepal in 2026.
New Leadership: The assembly also elected a new seven-member executive committee for NIAC, led by Dr. Muktiram Rizal.
NIAC’s Four-Point Plan to Strengthen ADR in Nepal
To address the current judicial crisis and ensure effective justice delivery, the Nepal International ADR Center released a four-point recommendation to the government and judiciary:
Legal Updates: Amend the existing Mediation Act (1998) and Conciliation Act (2011) to meet modern legal requirements.
Task Force for Backlogs: Form a dedicated task force under the Supreme Court to actively resolve pending cases through mediation.
Hybrid Model Adoption: Develop and implement a hybrid model effectively combining mediation and conciliation techniques.
Utilizing Expertise: Leverage NIAC’s extensive experience and expertise to accelerate the promotion and utilization of ADR across the country.
For more: Nepal Judiciary Crisis Experts
