Judges, Magistrates commence training on new Civil Procedure Rules

Jan 21, 2017 News

---

With the objective of transforming the manner in which justice is administered in Guyana, through the understanding and implementation of the new Civil Procedures Rules, (CPR), a two-day training programme is underway

at the Regency Suites Hotel, Hadfield Street, Georgetown.
The forum which is aimed at educating Judicial Officials on the new rules, opened yesterday.
Spearheaded by the Supreme Court of Justice in Guyana and the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ)/Jurist Project, the programme attracted Magistrates, Judges and lawyers from across the country.
The workshop is part of efforts to teach Judges, Magistrates, lawyers and other judicial officers, the new rules and what guidelines should be applied when dealing with civil matters.
The new rules are expected to simplify the litigation process and are a major step towards reducing the number of cases which go to court, as well as curbing long delays in the hearing of civil litigation cases.
The process will introduce new techniques to achieve that objective.
In his address to the gathering, Chancellor of the Judiciary, Justice Carl Singh noted that the rules have been long in the making.
“Many members of the legal profession doubted that they would be implemented in the near future. This morning, I am happy to say that the gestation period is over; that the midwives and obstetricians have attended the birth and delivery and a bouncing baby has arrived—the Civil Procedures Rules 2016,” he said.
Justice Singh expressed gratitude to members of the Caribbean Court of Justice, (CCJ) and the judiciary of Trinidad and Tobago for sharing their knowledge and expertise in the application and operation of the rules.
“They are here to help us cope with the attendant gripes and colic and teething pains, so that we can get a better appreciation and understanding of the operation and application of the rules,” he explained.
In her address to the gathering, Chief Justice (ag) Yonette Cummings -Edwards lauded the Chancellor for his efforts in bringing the rules into fruition. She noted that the realization of the new CPR rules has been one of his many outstanding achievements.
“The efforts for these rules started since the time of Chancellor (Justice Desiree) Bernard with assistance from Chancellor (Justice Kenneth) George.”
“We have had successive Chancellors since then, but bringing/seeing them to fruition, we owe a debt of gratitude to Chancellor Carl Singh.”
In his brief remarks, former Chief Justice of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court and President of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) Sir Dennis Byron noted that the enactment of the new civil rules will certainly improve the administration of justice.
The CCJ Judge noted that the new rules are intended to simplify the processes to enable the courts to deal with cases justly and speedily.
“The litigants, whom you serve, are supposed to benefit from having their cases dealt with quickly and having a more transparent system,” he said.
Sir Dennis urged those in attendance to use the new process as a method of achieving judicial excellence. He surmised that while the new Civil Procedures Rules are important, there must be a desire to continually improve the process.
As such, the Judge recommended that there be continuous reference towards improving the guidelines through the establishment of a Standing Rules Committee to evaluate and update the new Civil Procedure Rules 2016.
The new CPR was laid in the National Assembly in November 2016. On January 16, 2017, the CPR 2016 replaced Guyana’s existing rules, which date back to 1955.
With the implementation of the new rules, Guyana will finally fall in line with several other Caribbean states, including the OESC, Jamaica, Trinidad and Barbados.
According to information from the CPR website, the voluminous rules and legal forms span 187 pages and contain procedures for settling civil matters and making payments both in and out of court. This is expected to help to ease the clogging of courts by matters that can easily be settled.
This is the first time since Guyana became independent that the High Court rules have been subjected to a major overhaul. The changes have brought the new rules in line with similar rules in the Caribbean.
In drafting the CPR 2016, legal consultants Mr. E. Anthony Ross, Q.C. and Ms. Katrina Marciniak not only adopted many of the successful mechanisms already in place in the other Caribbean states, but they also introduced several new mechanisms in an attempt to overcome some of the problems that continue to plague those other systems.

---

---