Chief Justice of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court Dame Pereira has lamented at the lack of public trust in the court system saying that “more needs to be done to change the tide.” She made her comments speaking virtually from the host country Anguilla, to open the New Law Year. “An issue of great concern for our Caribbean democracies…is the waning public confidence in the justice system which has increasingly been affecting judiciaries across the globe,” she articulated.
The Chief Justice added that low public trust is hampering the “dispensation of justice”.
“When members of the public lose faith in the judiciary and its authority, they are more likely to take matters into their own hands; this is an undesirable state of affairs and must be avoided at all costs,” she explained.
She challenged her legal colleagues to hold themselves to a high ethical and professional standard as a way to promote public confidence.
Chief Justice Pereira added that reducing delays in legal judgments could assist in the improvement of public trust.
“For us as judges, honouring the time standard for delivery of decisions that litigants must be able to feel—win or lose.
“It is really the delays that are causing a loss of confidence in the justice system, and we must do all that we can do to improve on that,” she said.
This year, the Chief Justice explained that the ECSC is hoping to increase its public education programme as well as complete an audit of the work of the High Court offices to increase effectiveness.
This was, according to Chief Justice Pereira, a way to “build public confidence in the justice system while simultaneously maintaining the independence and impartiality”.
“These programmes will enable the public to appreciate what the court can and cannot do and better equip them to manage their expectations accordingly.
“The court offices are, in every respect, the doorways to the court; if you cannot get through the door then how do you get access to the court to hear your matter?” she said.
However, she noted that much has already been done by the ECSC to improve public trust, including the publishing of sentencing guidelines, a revision of the judicial code of conduct, the publication of judgments and case statistics online, as well as increased social media engagement.
In recalling the 55th Anniversary of the ECSC held last year, she noted that it remains a pillar of law in the region and the world. She said that challenges continue to affect justice in the region. She reported that phase 2 of the electronic mitigation portal is continuing with the expansion to include the Magistrates Courts. She also spoke of progress in the Family Division, the framework of mediation in criminal matters; minors appearing in court; civil procedure rules; and the judicial supplement that is a pilot project in Dominica to alleviate back cases.
I’m not going to fall for her sentiments since those words are like some kind of poison being forced on us.
She clearly have understood the plight of abuse of the court, the lack of confidence by we the public yet there’s no substance to her solution.
To make matters worse, this lady have been in the helm for some time so what is she now trying to tell us.