The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

THE Attorney General has urged that the justice system’s inefficiencies be tackled as a “priority”, warning that the protracted wait for judgments would be considered “judicial misconduct and an abuse of power” in many jurisdictions.

Addressing the Bahamas Bar Association’s first training and education retreat, Senator Allyson Maynard-Gibson said some litigants had been waiting for judgments for more than four years. And even some interlocutory rulings were taking longer than one year to be produced by the courts.

Calling for an improvement in both the quality and timeliness of judgments rendered by the Bahamian judicial system, Mrs Maynard-Gibson said: “Remedying the inefficiencies found in the delivery of justice must be a priority.

“Legal practitioners and their clients, and the reputation of the Bahamas, are being adversely impacted by increasing delays of the Supreme Court in producing judgments.

“I am advised that in some courts judgments have been outstanding for more than four years. I have been also advised that judgments in some interlocutory matters have been outstanding for over one year.”

She added: “In many other jurisdictions this would be considered judicial misconduct and an abuse of power. By whatever yardstick is used, this is unacceptable and it reflects poorly on our legal system. Bar Council and the Inner Bar must openly discuss inefficiencies like this towards finding a solution.”

Mrs Maynard-Gibson added that the Supreme Court Registry was “in dire need of evaluation, repair and process reengineering”.

She said: “A senior member of the Bar, practicing in civil litigation, called me late last night after Senate to urge me to speak about the Registry. That person indicated a non-objection to me quoting them: ‘Quite frankly, the present state of the registry leaves much to be desired and is an impediment to the entire legal system’.”