What happens when a court issues an enforcement order against you — to repay a debt, for example — and you fail to comply? The result may be what is known as a judicial “suspension of services,” which can take several forms, and has been the subject of much discussion; many people complain that they have been unable to renew their national identity documents and passports, and cannot travel or renew work visas under their sponsorship. The purpose of such suspensions is to persuade debtors to pay their debts, and it cannot be denied that this is often the positive result. But are the advantages of this process outweighed by the disadvantages? There were 66,000 enforcement requests last year, compared with 34,000 the year before, an increase that has placed considerable pressure on the 24 circuits of enforcement. For this reason, judicial authorities have tried to mitigate the effects of the suspension of services on society in general and debtors’ families in particular. Last April, the minister of justice excluded several areas from the threat of suspension, including the right to health care, education, work and civil documents, and also protected soldiers on the front line in the south of the Kingdom. The minister made it clear that the suspension of government services should not cause harm to a debtor’s family or employees. The law related to the suspension of services states that if a debtor fails to provide or disclose sufficient assets to repay a debt within five days of notification or publication of an execution order, the judge has the power to make several immediate orders. They include a travel ban; banning the debtor from issuing a power of attorney over their property; banning government agencies and financial institutions from dealing with the debtor; disclosing the properties of the debtor’s spouse and relatives; and imprisonment. This means that judges have considerable discretionary power. They should ascertain that the debtor is deliberately procrastinating rather than actually insolvent, in which case he would not be able to repay the debt under any circumstances. Also, the suspension of services must be correctly applied, and may not prevent the debtor continuing to receive two-thirds of their salary and other entitlements, including the cost of living allowance. The Shoura Council is currently preparing recommendations to reduce the harm caused by service suspensions, and to limit their application. There will be specialized supervisory committees that include the ministries of justice, interior, commerce, finance and communications, and concerned bodies such as the central bank and investment agencies. It would be my suggestion that these committees conduct a detailed study of actual cases and a review of execution orders issued by the judges through their discretionary power, combining the wisdom of their opinion with fairness to the parties to the financial claim. Then, of course, the role of these neutral committees is to follow up the application of the suspension of services in a regulated and orderly manner so that they serve the purpose for which they were created. Finally, the impact of the suspension of services is not the only problem that needs to be solved; there is the question of how some of these financial transactions come about in the first place, with the rapid spread of irresponsible loan shops and brokers that exploit people’s personal hardship and need. Dimah Talal Alsharif is a Saudi legal consultant, head of the health law department at the law firm of Majed Garoub and a member of the International Association of Lawyers. Twitter: @dimah_alsharif Disclaimer: Views expressed by writers in this section are their own and do not necessarily reflect Arab News" point-of-view