Today's press encounter with the CCJ's Justice Winston Anderson allowed us to ask about the case backlog and how the highest court in the land handles that.
In October, we told you how Belize's judiciary and the US Embassy celebrated the milestone where, in only a few short months, they were able to reduce Belize's case backlog by 42% of the total 40 thousand.
Justice Anderson told us today that the CCJ, with the permission of the head of Belize's judiciary, wants to help them reach a zero balance. Here's that conversation:
Daniel Ortiz
"Belize has had its difficulties and is trying to get down to zero balance as quickly as possible. How do you all manage that?"
Hon. Winston Anderson, Chair, CCJ Academy for Law
"We have absolutely no backlog in the Caribbean Court of Justice, none whatsoever. And that's because we've been [unclear] to attend performance standards, which we adhere to very, very strictly. Our President, Hon. Justice Adrian Saunders - presiding over the court, of course - makes sure that these rules are observed. I must say, of course, we don't have as many cases as there are in Belize. But we certainly would want to work with the Judiciary of Belize to ensure that the backlog is alleviated. And we are putting in place certainly collaborative arrangements, of course with the consent of the Chief Justice of Belize, to ensure that we can effect a reduction in the backlog. I think one of the key elements is the use of electronic assets - technology - as often as we can. I know that Apex has been in touch with the Chief Justice in recent times, and we are hoping that there can be a technological solution to some of the backlogs that exist."
