Cornwall Bar Association supporting court restrictions to limit virus spread

WESTERN BUREAU:

ATTORNEY-AT-LAW LAMBERT Johnson, the president of the Cornwall Bar Association (CBA), says his organisation is fully supportive of the regulations put in place to dictate how many persons can be in a courtroom at any one time, and the use of technology for court hearings, as part of the drive to limit the spread of COVID-19.

Johnson’s pronouncement comes in the wake of directives from the local judiciary for Jamaica’s courts to play a part in helping to reduce the spread of the respiratory virus, for which 26 infections and one death have been recorded locally so far.

“For the CBA, social distancing is very important. We have discussed it among ourselves, and we hope, at some the point, to get to a stage where maybe no more than five of us attend court at any given time, so that way, the counsels’ (lawyers) benches are not being overcrowded,” said Johnson, in an interview with The Gleaner.

Responsible for personal health

“There are certain directives that no more than 10 persons should be in a given space at any time. We wouldn’t mind if that was less, because every person must give primary concern to their health and welfare, and about accidentally passing on any virus to anyone,” the attorney added.

As part of the judiciary’s response plan, court cases that are usually open to the public have been limited to only those persons who are required for those cases, as well as members of the media. Court personnel have also received sensitisation training in relation to COVID-19.

Addressing the resolving of court cases in the face of COVID-19’s presence in Jamaica, Johnson said that hearings could take place using social media platforms, including for persons held under the state of public emergency (SOEs).

“In terms of the SOE, while I have not been officially advised, the situation is that hearings could be held via Skype, because once the necessary papers are filed with the tribunal, the hearings can be held by Skype and a determination made in those circumstances. That’s one creative way to get around the issue of social distancing, so electronics could play a very important role going forward,” said Johnson.

To date, approximately 1.5 billion people have been asked to stay home to prevent the virus from spreading.