ROADTOWN Tortola BVI, September 22nd, 2011 – Chief Justice of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court His Lordship the Honourable Hugh Rawlins officially opened the 2011-2012 Law Year with a special sitting of the Supreme Court.
The sitting was presided over by Honourable Justice Indra Hariprashad-Charles. Government officials in attendance at Tuesday’s sitting were His Excellency the Governor, Mr. Boyd McCleary, CMG, CVO, Deputy Premier, Honourable Dancia Penn, OBE, QC, and Deputy Governor Mrs. V. Inez Archibald.
Leader of the Opposition, Dr. the Honourable D. Orlando Smith, OBE was also in attendance. His Lordship, the Honourable Chief Justice Hugh A. Rawlins delivered his address in Antigua, which was simulcast in the Virgin Islands as well as the other eight member states and territories.
The Chief Justice’s remarks gave comprehensive updates on all projects and initiatives over the past year and the plans and projections of the court as it carries out the mandate guided by the Court’s mission statement and strategic plan.
In his remarks he spoke about the progress of the Integration of the Magistracy. The Chief Justice said, “The 53rd Inter Sessional Meeting that was held in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, the Heads of Government of the Organisation of the Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) signed an agreement, which will begin the process of integrating the Magistrates into the judiciary.
The next steps will include the ratification of those agreements by the Cabinet of each Member State and Territory, followed by the enactment of the necessary legislation to bring the agreement into effect.”
The Chief Justice in his remarks gave an update on the Halls of Justice Project. “This is a project by which the Court, in conjunction with the governments of the region, intends to construct new state of the art judicial complexes in the islands which the court serves.”
He added, “A Regional Project Steering Committee, which serves as an advisory Committee to the Chief Justice’s office, convened meetings as the project advanced to the near completion of the feasibility state. The committee studied elements of the budget funding strategy and proposed building sites.
A draft feasibility report, which details schematic drawings and floor layouts for the three typologies: small, medium and large court buildings and the production of full design guide or design brief for the buildings has been submitted.”
In reference to the technology of the court, the Chief Justice said, “The upgrades of the Judicial Enforcement Management Systems (JEMS) should be completed in all Member States by December 31, 2011.”
The Chief Justice shared, “In November 2011, our Court will host the Caribbean Association of Court Technology Users (CACTUS) Conference in Grenada for the second time. The objective of CACTUS is to promote the use, relevance, sharing and implementation of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) within Courts of the Caribbean.”
He added, “Video Conferencing facilities have now been installed at all the High Courts of the six independent Member States of the OECS. Video conferencing facilities have been installed both at the High Court and Commercial Court in the Virgin Islands.”
Remarks were also delivered at the special sitting by the acting Attorney General, Honourable Baba Aziz, Director of Public Prosecutions, Mrs. Elizabeth Hinds, Member of the Inner Bar, Dr. J. S. Archibald, Q.C., Member of the Utter Bar, Mr. Richard Arthur and President of the BVI Bar Association, Ms. Keisha Durham. Gerald Farara, QC and Paul Webster, QC also delivered remarks.
A special sitting of the Supreme Court is held annually to officially open the law year in the Territory, which begins in September.
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