Starting today, Monday, December 8th, a new legal procedure has come into effect in Morocco, requiring the adoption of the address registered on the electronic national identity card as the official reference for notifying litigants of judicial procedures. This is within the framework of implementing the latest amendments to the Criminal Procedure Code. This change aims to speed up and simplify notification procedures, which previously relied extensively on the judicial officer's procedure and the time and additional procedures it required.
The judicial authorities explained that this new procedure will contribute to improving the efficiency of notifications within the courts, especially in cases where it is difficult to reach litigants. The judicial authorities can now directly rely on the address listed on the national card without the need for lengthy search steps. This comes within the government's efforts to enhance transparency and link judicial procedures to an official and unified database for citizens. The judicial institutions affirmed that adopting the official address on the national card supports the rights of defense and is considered an important step towards developing judicial administration, by reducing the setbacks resulting from the absence of the parties or their change of addresses without reporting them. This update also allows for improving institutional communication and ensuring the smooth running of hearings and avoiding the disruption of files. The authorities called on citizens to update the data on their electronic national cards, especially their residential address, to avoid receiving notifications at an old address that may have legal consequences, as judicial procedures will be considered valid even if they are not actually received as long as they are sent to the officially registered address.
