Editor-in-Chief  Prof. Badria A. Al-Awadi

This second part of the special issue containing the research papers presented at the Fourth Annual Conference of Kuwait International Law School, which was held on May 10-11 under the title: “Law… An Instrument for Reform and Development”, includes a number of studies that seek to clarify the role of law in the reform and development of social fields through the positive critical approach. It started with the statement of the prohibitions to allow the expansion of the executive branch in the field of crimes, and the emphasis on guaranteeing the right of litigation by the Constitution under any pretext, warning against an expansion in the field of sovereignty.
In addition, it considered the importance of community partnership in the field of rebuilding the entire legislative system, represented in the Constitution and various laws, which is a guarantee against the failure and chaos surrounding such major projects. It ended with the presentation of the mechanisms of continuous legal development in Kuwait and other developing countries through committees or commissions reviewing laws or emphasizing the use of legal reasonableness and logic. The research also included the provisions and rules of the unified law of VAT in the GCC countries and the Kuwaiti Competition Law.
This diversity of research papers of legal nature and the areas covered by them confirms the fact that modern societies have come to the conclusion that the law is a pivotal tool in the organization and development of social life if there is a public will to respect and uphold the rule of law as an integrated system aimed at achieving the higher interests of society rather than the interests of a ruling minority or social group. In this context, public will is meant to create and strengthen public awareness and a sense of the importance of law and order in the life of our societies, and to contribute in spreading this awareness through a national strategy that mobilizes all community resources and a practical daily practice.
This pivotal role of law is of increasing importance because it is an important factor in achieving security and stability in the comprehensive sense, especially if it is based on justice, equality, freedom, and legitimacy.
On the other hand, this legal system needs to re-examine its previous positive roles in order to ensure that it is effective in framing social transformations and pushing them towards wider horizons. This requires those who are in charge to use creative thinking based on the analytical, critical and comparative approach, as law is not a Holy book and is not a rigid system that cannot afford renewal or jurisprudence.
In this context, the broad base of the legal system, which includes jurists, lawyers, academics, university institutions, courts, advisory bodies and constitutional councils as well as constitutional authorities, will assist in the maturation of the review and development processes and in the establishment of permanent mechanisms for this purpose.
It is important to point out that the faculties of law are one of the main elements of this process, because it is in their classes where legal workers and many of those working in the fields of politics, legislation, and implementation of law receive their first and primary form of education.
Also, the jurisprudence and analysis of professors working at these faculties are an inexhaustible source of emerging issues. Therefore, these faculties also need periodic review to ensure that their performance is developed and their social contributions are enhanced.
Even though the factors related to the pivotal role of the law in our communities are multiple and intersecting, and they would require a lengthier discussion, it is necessary to point out that the law requires ethics and a proper application based on the aim of achieving the interests of societies. This is related to social values that should be considered to ensure the public interest and constitutes a tool to achieve the desired stability and progress.