KUWAIT CITY, Nov 22: The Court of Appeals upheld the verdict issued by a lower court to count the period of study in the Police Academy as part of the period of active service required for retirement. Lawyer Ali Al-Ali had filed a lawsuit on behalf of a police officer, requesting a ruling to oblige the Public Institution for Social Security to calculate the period of study in the Police Academy within the period of actual service necessary for retirement.

The Court of First Instance had issued a ruling to include the period of study as part of the active service period, but the Public Institution for Social Security had appealed the ruling and demanded its cancellation.

The Court of Appeals rejected the appeal, and thus established the principle that all police officers have the right to request for the period of their study to be calculated within the period of active service. Lawyer Al-Ali referred to Article No. 4’s paragraph No. 3 in Law No. 69/1980, which explicitly confirmed that the period of study at the Police Academy is counted within the period of active service as long as this period was spent successfully, and given that the period of study is prior to the date of assuming the rank and paved the way for the service. This was what was mentioned in the explanatory memorandum of the aforementioned law. By Jaber Al-Hamoud Al-Seyassah Staff