Chief Justice lauds Court of Appeal president

The Judiciary Strategic Business Plan for 2024-2028 was launched recently, following the successful implementation of an initial plan for the 2019 – 2023 period.

In hailing the impact of the initial plan, Chief Justice Bryan Sykes said it enabled the judiciary to have better dialogue with the executive when it came to funding of the judiciary, in addition to giving focus and direction.

He hailed as a ‘remarkable achievement’ the clearance rate of case backlogs by over 40 per cent in just about three years.

The chief justice outlined that over the period the clearance rate moved from 71 per cent to 81 per cent, to 111 per cent in 2022, then to 117 per cent last year.

Sykes said that at the current rate of increase the court was on its way to eliminating backlog where ‘active cases’ is under five per cent.

He further used the opportunity of the launch to commend President of the Court of Appeal Justice Patrick Brooks for his leadership.

“What I would wish to do is recognise and pay tribute to the president of the Court of Appeal publicly for his leadership, commitment and inspiration provided to me personally and also to other members of the court,” Sykes said.

Justice Brooks assumed the position of president of the Court of Appeal in December 2020.

“In his brief time there he has overseen significant improvements in the court not just in productivity but the establishment of several committees that have seen an improvement in the quality of life of members of staff. And he has fully embraced the vision and mission of the judiciary and that has manifested in the productivity of the court. So, thank you very much Mr President,” Sykes said.