Justice reform system aims to speed up court procedures

Recommendations for the justice reform system will include proposals, amongst other things, to reduce procedural time-frames, a more comprehensive use of technology in court proceedings, more consistency in sentencing policy and the setting up of a customer-care unit.

Furthermore, court discretion on persons who may have reformed themselves during trial, the restricting of libel cases to be classed as a civil case – as opposed to criminal - the setting up of a University credit which will focus solely on the drafting of laws, the fast-tracking of court hearings on cases of domestic violence, and a reform in the Gozo courts were also included in the document which, in total, covers 450 proposals.

The recommendations, which form part of a justice reform consultation document, launched at the end of last year, were this morning presented to members of the Malta Council for Social and Economic Development (MCESD) by Justice Junior Minister Owen Bonnici at the Ministry of Social Dialogue, Consumer Affairs and Civil Liberties in the presence of Minister Helena Dalli.

Bonnici said that the reform will affect all sectors of society and not just legal representatives, including the various social partners. It is for this reason, he said, that he hoped the social partners will contribute their “crucial” ideas and feedback on the recommendations and hoped that there will be more meetings on the subject, prior to the topic being discussed at parliamentary stage.

On her part, Dalli said that the reform was sure to help the country attract those foreign investors who may have, in the past, been discouraged at the lengthy court cases. She said this will make Malta “more competitive”.

Press representatives were not allowed to sit in for the presentation.