One of the bills that was brought to the Senate from the House of Representatives was the Law Revision and Law Reform Bill. It will essentially provide for modernizing the system which the laws of Belize are revised, consolidated, and edited. It will also see the establishment of a law reform commission.
And while both sides agree that this bill is long overdue, UDP Senator Patrick Faber had some concerns.
Patrick Faber, UDP Senator
"We therefore suggest that this is something that is necessary, yes, but we also have our concerns about it. Under Section 7, for instance, the law revision commissioner is granted very broad powers to clarify language and simplify phraseology and even reorganize laws as he or she sees it fit."
"While these powers may appear harmless, as you heard Senator Courtney just allude to, they open the door to changes that can alter the meaning and substance of the law, even if inadvertently doing so."
"I don't know, our experience, and it's not with the laws of the land, just using or internal struggles in the UDP as an example of what law, and for us it is a constitution of our party, how that can be misinterpreted and wrongly used by the interpretation of individuals."
"Secondly, Madam President, the troubling use of retrospective orders is an issue. Section 8-2, 9-2 and 24-3 allow the Attorney General to correct errors or omissions with retrospective effect. This means that changes can be applied to the law retroactively, potentially affecting past actions and legal outcomes."
"This, Madam President, is a very serious threat to the principle of legal certainty, which is the cornerstone of justice in any democratic society. Laws must be predictable, citizens and businesses should be able to act based on what the law says today, not what it might be declared to have meant later on and we are nowhere not on the 13th amendment yet. I'm not anticipating the debate."
"Thirdly, Madam President, the over centralization of authority in the attorney general is a concern. The bill places the law reform commission, the law revision commissioner, the appointment of staff, the setting of fees, the approval of updates and even the pricing of legal publications squarely under the control of the attorney general."
"While the attorney general holds an important constitutional role, concentrating such broad powers in one office undermines institutional independence and opens the door to politicization of legal processes."
"And before Senator Courtney makes it personal, I want to declare that Anthony Sylvester is my very good friend. Madam President, these concerns do not negate the potential benefits of the bill and I need to say that."
"We believe that it is something that is necessary. I started out saying that, but modernization must not come at the cost of democratic safeguards. Accessibility must not override accuracy and legal certainty, and reform must not become a tool for unchecked executive power."
The Leader of Government Business Eamon Courtenay then rose to clarify some of Faber's concerns.
Eamon Courtenay, Leader of Government Business
"A law revision commissioner is a specialized skill and a specialized function. The starting premise is clause 10 of the bill, a law revision commissioner cannot, has no power to alter or amend the law, the substance of the law."
"It is an extremely technical profession to go through legislation to find out errors, omissions, mistakes, updating, etc., and to technically correct them without amending or altering the substance of the law."
"Bearing in mind at all times that if a law revision commissioner presents a revised law, it still has to come to Parliament. So there should be no fear about this, the extensive powers given to a law revision commissioner."
"Further to that, the law revision commissioner's powers are spelled out in consummate detail. So he has to or she has to identify which particular power he or she is exercising when he or she is revising legislation."
"With respect to the law revision commission, section 29, clause 29, there shall be a law reform commission for the purpose of promoting the reform of the law. The Attorney General shall by instrument appoint a chairperson and such other persons as appear to him to be suitably qualified pursuant to subsection 3 of the law reform commissioners."
"So there is a law reform commission. Commissioner and a Commission. The Commission is composed of such persons as the Attorney General determines, satisfies clause 29.3. A person appointed to be a law reform Commissioner under subsection 2 shall be a person who holds or has held judicial office or a person who is an experienced legal practitioner or an experienced teacher of a law in a university."
"The bill is good, it is not perfect but I really think that we should pass the legislation and let's get it implemented enacted and get this process moving to the extent that there is any need for any further amendments or changes in the future. I think we should adopt it then."
We'll have more from the Senate in tomorrow's newscast.
