Case management in reducing case backlogs: potential adaptation from the New South Wales district court to Bangladesh civil trial courts

The District Court of NSW was chosen as an example of successful use of case management in reducing backlogs and disposal time in civil cases; therefore the court system of Bangladesh has been compared with that of New South Wales (Australia) concerning the courts' structure, procedures to appoint judges, jurisdiction of the specific court, the separation of the judiciary from the executive, and other institutions relating to the court system. The study aims to show how case management can reduce case backlogs from the civil trial courts of Bangladesh by finding the practical causes through empirical research following grounded theory. Semi-structured, open-ended interviews with lawyers, litigants,judges, and court staff were conducted in seven districts of Bangladesh between September 2013and January 2014. This empirical research found that time limits imposed by law were not maintained in the courts. Moreover, excessive workload upon judges and lawyers, low rates of disposal through mediation, uncertain intention of lawyers and clients, insufficient logistic and technical support, frequent involvement of the higher courts in interlocutory matters, and also complex procedural law and its applications placed immense pressure on the courts creating huge backlogs. Adopting a suitable case management system in Bangladesh, based on that used in NSW, could reduce the backlogs. Recommendations based upon the empirical research are advanced.