Individual Corruption

According to a survey of judges in the Transparency International Global Corruption Report 2007, the largest group of court personnel taking bribes are court clerks. Bribes are paid to influence the issuance of court summons and trial dates. Others who benefit from bribes are public prosecutors, police and lawyers. Furthermore, it is also reported that people who are willing to pay bribes can have better access to the legal system, according to Freedom House 2011.

Business Corruption

According to the US Department of State 2011, the judiciary is perceived to be the most corrupt institution in Sri Lanka. The courts are subject to political influence and they do not always result in impartial verdicts. This, combined with the knowledge that court procedures are very time-consuming as their procedures are such that one party in a dispute can prolong the cases indefinitely results in companies avoiding taking commercial disputes to court. This is especially the case when the Sri Lankan government is one of the parties in a business dispute because it is more difficult for a company to secure impartial judgement from the court. However, the Supreme Court made several rulings against the government in 2008.

Political Corruption

According to the Transparency International Global Corruption Report 2007, judges who do not adhere to the political line are warned, and if that does not provide the desired result, they are often dismissed on some pretext. 'Uncooperative' judges are frequently intimidated and/or transferred. On the other hand, judges who toe the political line can act with impunity, even if there is evidence of corrupt practices such as bribe-taking litigants or junior staff.

Freedom House 2011 reports that judicial independence has been respected by successive governments, and judges are generally free to make decisions without explicit political intimidation. However, there has been a growing concern about politicisation of the judiciary in recent years, in particular in the appointment of high-level judges. In addition to political interference, corruption, especially in the lower courts, is fairly common. It is reported that people who are willing to pay bribes will have better access to the legal system.

Frequency

The World Bank & IFC: Doing Business 2012:
- In order to enforce a commercial contract, a company must on average go through 40 procedures, taking 1,318 days at an average cost of 23% of the claim (most of it being attorneys' fees).

World Economic Forum: The Global Competitiveness Report 2011-2012:
- Business executives give the independence of the judiciary from influences of members of government, citizens, or companies a score of 4.3 on a 7-point scale (1 being 'heavily influenced' and 7 'entirely independent').

- Business executives give both the efficiency of the legal framework for private companies to settle disputes and to challenge the legality of government actions and/or regulations a score of 4.5 and 4.3 respectively on a 7-point scale (1 being 'extremely inefficient' and 7 'highly efficient').

Transparency International: Global Corruption Report 2007:
- Out of 441 litigants and professionals, 84% perceived the judiciary not always being fair and impartial, of which 20% maintained that it was never fair and impartial.

- Among judges, lawyers and court personnel, 83% claimed that the judicial system was corruptible.