Measures to be Implemented to Improve Court System

Minister of Justice and Attorney General, Senator A.J. Nicholson, has said that several measures would be implemented within the court system to make it more efficient.
“The ability of the justice system to meet the future needs of Jamaicans will, to a large extent, depend on our ability to be constantly in reform mode and to be in a position to move with the times,” Senator Nicholson told the Senate yesterday (March 22).
He informed the Upper House that one of the measures to improve the efficiency of the court system included the use of the Judicial Enforcement Management System. “This is a court specific software, which will be activated and utilized in the Clarendon Resident Magistrate’s Court,” he said.
“The system will provide an efficient means of tracking cases with information on the ageing cases, the number of times cases have been adjourned and the reason for the adjournment,” said the Minister.
He also informed the Senate that a digital system would be introduced for the recording of depositions within the courts.
“Currently, this activity requires persons with specialized skills and aptitude in sufficient numbers throughout the courts to carry out this function. The new system is simpler and requires a lower skill set. On April 22 this year, there will be a demonstration at the Clarendon Resident Magistrate’s Court in the use of this system,” said the Minister.
In the meantime, Senator Nicholson said Jamaicans were raising concerns about how they were being treated by court staff, adding that training in customer service would be carried out as one way of addressing this matter.
The Minister also pointed out that the filing system within the courts would be modernized.