Chamber of Advocates calls for accountability and responsibility in judiciary

At a ceremony to mark the opening of the Forensic Year, Chamber of Advocates President Reuben Balzan said members of the judiciary should be aware that they have a responsibility towards the public, and ways should be found to make them accountable.

“A judge or magistrate has every right to expect autonomy and independence to be able to work serenely and has every right to expect respect and dignity. However, the public has the same right to expect that a member of the judiciary acts with dignity and integrity both professionally and in life,” Balzan said.

He added that the public also had the right to expect that justice be served in a reasonable time, that sittings are held on time and that judgements are not repeatedly put off for months.

“If such shortcomings are not addressed the public should have every right to resort to a mechanism that would serve as disciplinary if needed,” Balzan said, noting that such mechanism already existed through the Commission for the Administration of Justice.

“This should not only be present but also effective. Unfortunately, the Commission does not have enough teeth to exercise all its functions. If a member of the judiciary is not working effectively, all the commission can do is draw his attention to the problem. The other measure would be the removal of that judge or magistrate through a parliamentary vote approved by two-thirds of parliament.”

Balzan added that it was “ridiculous” that no other disciplinary measures existed between the warning and the removal of a member of the judiciary.

Balzan called for a reform of the Commission that would address the accountability of judges and magistrates and where an effective disciplinary mechanism is created, without hindering their autonomy and independence.

He said that the public was losing its trust in the judiciary system because they are left waiting for hours, sometimes even for nothing because the case would be deferred.

Balzan said there was a huge problem with the managing of cases, and meanwhile there existed resistance to a ‘common diary system’. Such system would provide for all civil cases to be coordinated in a central system where lawyers would no longer have two cases at the same time.

Referring to the boycott on Independence Day, Balzan said the members of the judiciary did not have adequate working conditions and salaries – “which could send the message that the judiciary is not important enough for the government of the day”.

“The Chamber of Advocates expects a professional and organized Judiciary which has at its disposal all necessary resources to function as it should.”

Closing off his address, Balzan said the Chamber of Advocates would be supporting those individuals who request that the judge or magistrate presiding over their case be changed, if a sentence has been pending for more than 18 months.

In a reply to this during his speech, Chief Justice Silvio Camilleri said this system would not necessarily mean that a solution would be found: “Even more, this could be counterproductive, resulting in more delays.”