Erbil, Kurdistan Region - Iraq’s Federal Supreme Court is set to review two critical lawsuits on Monday concerning the delayed disbursement of salaries for public employees in the Kurdistan Region. The cases aim to decouple salary payments from the ongoing financial and political disputes between Baghdad and Erbil.
Soran Omar, a member of the Iraqi parliament from the Kurdistan Justice Group (Komal), told Rudaw on Thursday that the court’s upcoming schedule includes hearings for “two cases related to the Kurdistan Region.”
The first lawsuit, he said, “demands that the salary issue be treated as a standalone matter, separate from political disputes and operational expenditures,” and names both Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani and Finance Minister Taif Sami as defendants.
The second lawsuit focuses on "the issuance of executive orders regarding the salaries of public employees in the Kurdistan Region," Omar said, noting the strong possibility that the court may issue rulings on both cases during Monday’s session.
Tensions between Erbil and Baghdad escalated in late May when Iraq’s federal finance ministry halted all budget transfers to the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), including payments for over 1.2 million public employees. The ministry accused the KRG of exceeding its 12.67 percent allocation of the 2025 federal budget and failing to deliver its agreed share of oil to Baghdad.
In early June, the Federal Supreme Court announced that it had received multiple complaints from Kurdistan Region public servants seeking an injunction to ensure the continued and timely payment of their salaries. These complaints cited earlier court rulings mandating both the federal government and the KRG to guarantee regular salary payments for public sector employees, retirees, and social welfare recipients, irrespective of political disputes.
However, the hearings were postponed amid internal upheaval at the Federal Supreme Court.
Last week, Judge Munther Hussein was sworn in as the new head of the Federal Supreme Court, just days after his formal appointment by Iraqi President Abdul Latif Rashid, following the retirement of former Chief Justice Jassim al-Umairi.
Umairi's retirement - officially attributed to "health reasons" - came after a wave of resignations from within the court, with six of the nine permanent members and three reserve members stepping down in mid-June, reportedly in direct protest against his leadership.
Following Hussein's appointment, the resigned judges rescinded their resignations.
These developments have raised hopes that the court will now address the urgent issue of unpaid public servant salaries in the Kurdistan Region.
For its part, the Federal Supreme Court on Wednesday confirmed it would hear a case requesting it compel the federal finance ministry to guarantee the “monthly and uninterrupted” payment of salaries to public employees in the Kurdistan Region, regardless of political disputes or other hindrances, in line with the provisions of Iraq’s federal budget law.
The lawsuit also seeks an executive order mandating that the ministry resume timely salary payments for civil servants "from this month onward - until a final resolution is reached on the matter."
That same day, the court will also consider a separate lawsuit calling for a clear legal separation between the salaries of Kurdistan Region public employees and broader political and fiscal disputes.
Both lawsuits are scheduled for their first hearings on Monday, July 14.
