Pakistan - Judicial system Pakistan's judicial system stems
directly from the system that was used in British India. The
Supreme Court has original, appellate, and advisory
jurisdictions. The president of Pakistan appoints the justices.
Each province has a high court, the judges of which are also
named by the president. Below the high courts are district and
session courts, and below these are subordinate courts and
village courts on the civil side and magistrates on the criminal
side. There are no jury trials in Pakistan. The British
tradition of an independent judiciary has been undermined in
Pakistan by developments over the last 50 years. In May 1991,
for example, the National Assembly adopted legislation which
incorporated the Islamic legal code, the Shari'ah into
Pakistan's legal system. A Federal Shari'ah Court has the power
to nullify any law it finds repugnant to Islam. Courts in
Pakistan are also subject to pressure from the executive branch,
in part because of presidential power over transfer and t