AG: Govt in dialogue with judiciary on critical issues

Senior Political Reporter

Attorney General Reginald Armour has noted Chief Justice Ivor Archie’s remarks at yesterday’s law term opening. However, the AG says it is a remarkable coincidence that legislation to create divisions in the judiciary to handle probate and other matters was being debated in Parliament yesterday.

Armour was speaking while piloting the Civil Division Bill, which was passed to streamline and modernise judicial operations through the creation of three subdivisions within the Civil Division: Civil Court, Small Claims and Estates Administration division. The first two divisions are to deal with bottlenecks in the system and the Estates Administration division will deal with lengthy probate delays.

Armour said, “It is a remarkable coincidence in the context of the opening of the new law term—and the remarks of the Honorary Chief Justice—that this bill is being debated for passage today. This bill, being first listed on Parliament’s Order Paper on 28th June 2024, it is one of those bills which I met when I took office in March 2022 and which, encouraged by the very cordial and productive relationship which I enjoy with the Honorary CJ in my tenure, was reviewed by Cabinet sub-committee Legislative Review Committee and was agreed to by Cabinet Minute on the 11th October 2023.”

Armour said he’d attended yesterday’s law term launch and listened to the Chief Justice.

“He , in very frank terms, spoke to the challenges the judiciary’s having and what I found very coincidental and remarkable, coming from (the launch) is, here we are on the very day in the afternoon, speaking to legislation which is the product of the collaboration and the conversation which has been taking place between the Chief Justice and the executive—so we can advance the system.”

He said Cabinet’s Finance and General Purposes Committee had been sitting and is still sitting with the Chief Justice and his administrators to work through some of the notes that are before Cabinet, so that when Cabinet approves this, “it will be done with full oversight, knowledge and understanding of the judiciary’s needs. And it’s out of that exercise, remarkably and coincidentally, this bill is before Parliament for creation of the Civil Division.”

Citing clauses on staffing for the Civil Court—requiring special training, experience and temperament suitable for that court—Armour further noted the Chief Justice’s remarks on a certain challenge.

“… The conversation he’s trying to have with the Salaries Review Commission and the Chief Personnel officer,” Armour explained.

He said the bill’s clauses—such as requiring special training—was approved by Cabinet for passage into law on the judiciary’s recommendation.

Armour said this was in the ongoing conversation that continues to take place between the judiciary, represented by the Chief Justice, and the executive, represented by the Attorney General’s Office, in an engagement with the judiciary.

“… That does not rely on the artificiality of persons who claim to be constitutional experts when they speak to the so-called ‘separation of powers’. The reality is this Government accepts that it must engage with, speak with and work with the judiciary as an independent arm under the Constitution to progress the quality of the administration of justice.”

Armour said the current Petty Civil Court has inefficiencies, including lengthy times to dispose of cases (average of two years) and administrative bottlenecks. He said the Probate Registry is significantly delayed, completing only about 35 per cent of the large estate cases filed each year, “causing understandable extensive public frustration.”

He said the Estates Administration Division seeks to address a Probate Unit which is insufficiently resourced to address and manage the complexity of legal and administrative issues and caseload. The establishment of the Estates Administration Office within the Civil Division proposes to tackle these inefficiencies through specialised staffing and procedural reforms.

Noting specialised staffing, Armour again noted the Chief Justice’s remarks, adding, “The overall objective is to modernise the civil justice system in T&T, making it more responsive to the needs of the public and business sectors, while reducing delays and improving accessibility.”