Academic

The United Arab Emirates May Allow Female Judges

By Bridget Crawford

According to the this article in the Middle East Times, women in the UAE will soon be allowed to become judges.  According to UAE official Mohammed bin Nakhira al-Dhaheri, “at present the law states that only a Muslim man is entitled to assume the position of a judge.” The Minister failed to specify an exact date when the law will be changed. Additionally, this article from Reuters notes that the planned change would make the UAE the second Gulf Arab country that allows women to become judges.

In the U.S. context, scholars contest the impact that gender has on judicial decisions.  Compare David W. Allen & Diane E. Wall, Role Orientations and Women State Supreme Court Justices, 77 Judicature 156, 165 (1993) and Thomas G. Walker & Deborah J. Barrow, The Diversification of the Federal Bench: Policy and Process Ramifications, 47 J. Pol. 596, 613-15 (1985). 

If the law in the UAE does change, that country will provide an interesting testing ground for theories about the role of gender in judicial decision-making.

-Bridget Crawford

Full post as published by Feminist Law Professors on January 19, 2008 (boomark / email).