 So, I take this opportunity to welcome each and every one of you to this special sitting with best wishes for a new year filled with much hope and positive change. I pray that as we embark upon this new year, God will be so upon us His richest blessings, wisdom and guidance. Starting with the rotation for the commencement of the court's lawyer, we are pleased to greet you from the beautiful island of Anguilla, both physically and virtually. I am especially happy to be physically here in Anguilla, the place where I first started my search on the bench of the Eastern Caribbean, the court hosted a week of celebratory events under the theme the ECSC at 55, navigating, redefining and re-imagining the future. Those events were well received. Throughout its relatively short existence, the court has made its mark on the jurisprudence of the English-speaking Caribbean and remains a pillar for the rule of law in the region and indeed the world. It is also significant and its 55th year is worthy of celebration. In more ways than one, the anniversary celebrations set the stage for a progressive law year and more building blocks for a progressive future. I take this opportunity to express my gratitude to all persons who helped me make the court's 55th anniversary a memorable one. I come to one of my pet projects, the implementation of phase two of the Electronic Litigation Portal. It is undeniable that a considerable part of our mandate of improving access to justice is the development of a digitally-driven court system. We live in an era where technology sets the stage for our very existence. It impacts every asset of our daily lives, like law. Having recognized the real benefits to be gained from the use of modern information communication technologies, the court has been actively pursuing the integration of these technologies into its everyday operations. As many of you may know, the main component of our ICT push has been the phase implementation of our electronic document filing and service from the use of modern information communication portal, which commenced in 2018. In my last year address, I announced the achievement of a significant milestone, the completion of the first phase of the implementation of the portal, which sought being made available for new civil matters filed in the High Court and the Court of Appeal in all member states and territories comprising the Court's jurisdiction. I also revealed in my last address that the court would soon be embarking on the second phase of implementation. This second phase began last year and is ongoing. It involves the long-awaited expansion of the portal to accommodate high court criminal matters as well as proceedings filed in the magistrates' courts in each member state and territory. This phase is pivotal to modernizing the delivery of services offered by the magistrates' courts, which statistically handles the bulk of court cases brought in every state or territory. The completion of the portal would also enhance user experiences at the lower but no less important level of the justice system. It is also a further step towards integration of the magistrates into the higher judiciary. This process of integration must happen. Courts exist for the purpose of delivering justice. There should therefore be no distinctions or impairments legally or otherwise in the realization of this purpose, yet impediment species within our OECS region. It is time that this lack of progress for full integration of the magistracy be addressed once and for all. The Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, however, is doing what it can to facilitate the integration process and to date some progress has been made. In October 2022, the first launch of the portal for the magistracy took place in the family division of the magistrates' court in Antigua and Barbuda. This was followed shortly thereafter with the launch of the portal in November for all of Magisterial Civil Matters in the territory of the Virgin Islands, and then a few weeks later with the launch of family matters in the district court in St. Lucia. We have also put in place uniquely crafted rules which govern e-piling and e-serving of documents in the magistrates' district court in a manner best suited to the summary and pre-nature of these courts. I am heartened by the fact that the launch of the portal for the magistracy has shown great promise for the future delivery of court services based on the enthusiasm displayed by court staff and practitioners alike. This I imagine has much to do with the fact that the magistracy did not escape the wrath of the pandemic, which hampered much of its operations. This phase of the portal's implementation is therefore, in my view, a critically important step towards widening access to justice and will undeniably create a more resilient justice system. It is my hope that this lawyer sees the implementation of the portal in the magistrates' courts in the other six member states and territories. The plans to do so are already underway, and I have no doubt that our committed implementation team will make it happen. The next stage of portal implementation will be the addition of the criminal face types at all levels of the judiciary. I know that this is anxiously awaited by all our stakeholders. I assure you that the portal implementation team is hard at work in making this a reality as well. When that happens, we will have completed the circle of linking the courts at all levels of the justice system. It is only then that we could feel some sense of satisfaction at attaining at least one of our goals in the digitization process. There are still other tides to navigate in our digitization journey, not the least of which is finding a digital solution for the court's transcription process, which has been played with delays leading to highly undesirable results. This we are actively pursuing. It is an urgent need. Blended virtual and in-person hearings. Together with the EE litigation portal, the court has also navigated the difficulties being presently experienced by conducting many of its sittings virtually. Easy to use video conferencing platforms such as Zoom have allowed many awful ports to conduct remote hearings fairly smoothly. Virtual hearings have suited the civil and commercial divisions of the high court quite well. Video conferencing has also allowed the court of appeal to conduct its schedule sittings for each member state and territory. This is even more significant given the ongoing challenges with regional air transportation. It is truly remarkable that this week is the first time since March 2020 that the court of appeal is conducting an in-person sitting, having been no less busy sitting virtually. For all continued productivity in difficult times, these video conferencing tools have been a boon. That said, it is recognized that there is no perfect substitute for an in-person courtroom environment, particularly for trials where judges sometimes require to observe witnesses and manage juries. And so with the relaxation of the social distancing protocols, we are gradually seeing a blended approach of virtual and in-person hearings being adopted across our member states and territories. I hope that going forward, we will continue to see an increased reliance on this blended approach to court sittings and that eventually trials in the courtroom will be fully resumed. It is also contemplated that this year we'll see the court of appeal conducting in-person sittings on a more frequent basis once their travel logistics can be ironed out. It has been far too long since we visited many of the member states and territories, and we look forward with much enthusiasm to in-person sittings of the court of appeal becoming more commonplace. As we look forward, we will strive to embrace the innovations and lessons learned from the past few years, and we will continue to do what it takes to meet your challenges, to save God, what is precious to all of us, if fair, impartial, and independent justice system, the family division, the launch. Concurrent with the ICT push last year was the establishment of the long-awaited family division in Antigua and Barbuda. Bringing this division into existence was a monumental task. It required essentially a consolidation of the magistracy and the High Court in respect of family proceedings under one roof. Providing the public with what I consider as a one-stop shop for resolving a myriad of family-related disputes and for accessing a number of social and family-related services in a uniform, user-friendly, and consistent manner within a single space. For years, the court has considered specialized divisions as not merely desirable, but necessary for increasing operational efficiency, which will in turn improve customer satisfaction and build greater confidence in the justice system. The focus must remain on building the public's perception of the courts as not being a place but a service and a place where justice is delivered and where they receive justice. That said, the court needs adequate physical spaces for delivering that service. I renew my call to all governments in the OECS to build proper purpose-built court facilities for the delivery of that service. This need is not being given the priority it deserves. At present, some member states and territories have separate criminal and civil divisions of the High Court, and some also have specialized commercial divisions. And so it was this desire to improve efficiency in family proceedings, as well as to integrate the social services to enhance responsiveness to the court that the court put plans in place to establish specialist family divisions across the member states and territories, beginning with Antigua and Barbuda. I am reliably advised that in the short time which has elapsed since the establishment of the family division in Antigua and Barbuda, it has seen tremendous success. And so I look forward to the establishment of other specialized family divisions to enable more efficient resolution of family and child related matters in our region. The introduction of a criminal mediation program. Last year, I also announced that steps were being taken to introduce a framework for mediation in appropriate criminal matters, specifically those which are summary in nature. This effort is well underway with much work done on a comprehensive practice direction for implementing the criminal mediation program. This program is being designed to more meaningfully engage and positively impact on child and youth justice throughout the region. Critically, it aims to introduce diversionary measures for children and youth in conflict with the law. These measures are now needed in our societies more urgently than ever before, as we continue to see and increase in young persons finding themselves before all courts for minor offenses and even more serious ones in many cases, running the risk of completely derailing their future prospects if convicted. It is hoped and expected that the criminal mediation program will force the greater utilization of restorative justice practices in our member states and territories as, in many cases, what matters most is how we repair the damage that has been done. A regime of punishment is not always the answer. Rather, a restoration of broken young lives ensures a more positive and lasting benefit to society. It goes a long way towards creating a more just society. And so, through the implementation of this program in the coming months, we hope to see a reduction in the rates of youth offenders as well as youth recidivism, benefiting our small island state societies in more ways than one. The implementation and sustainability of this program will need the full support of our government's financial and other resources. I say this, though, that the overall gains to be derived from that system fire outweigh the financial capital input. I think of it more as a capital reallocation. The civil procedure rules revision. Last year, the Civil Procedure Rules Review Committee made significant strides towards completing the revision of the civil procedure rules. I said before that this is a monumental task. It's a lot of work, attention to great detail, but we are almost, almost at the finish line. The new civil procedure rules are on target, and we hope that it will be coming into effect during the first quarter of this year. I look forward to the utilization of the new amendments, which I seek to modernize, which seek to modernize and simplify various aspects of civil practice. In large measure, the changes reflect the recommendations of the users of the rules. Now, users there, users from the front end, users of the court on the back end. I also look forward to the eminent developments in our Eastern Caribbean jurisprudence, particularly in those areas of procedure revamped or introduced by the new rules of court. Of note will be the introduction of judicial settlements. This process contemplates mediation complements, sorry, this process complements mediation as an alternative dispute resolution tool for the early resolution of disputes. This should therefore improve clearance rates and reduce case backlog. Or judicial officers have already received the training in conducting judicial settlement conferences, and it is my hope that this process will be embraced by legal practitioners and litigants alike. When the new civil procedure rules take effect, and I think they're probably going to be called the Civil Procedure Rules 2023, I expect settlement conferences to happen across the length and breadth of the OECS. I am exceedingly grateful to the committee, chaired by Justice of Appeal Webster, for their dedication to seeing the stars through. I also take this opportunity to express my gratitude to the teams from the Impact Justice Project, as well as the Legislative Drafting Unit in Antigua and Barbuda for their support. Judicial settlement conferences, this is a pilot project that the court is going to be undertaking, and that push toward judicial settlement starts immediately with the implementation of a pilot project for the Commonwealth of Dominica. This pilot project was implemented by way of a practice direction, number one of 2023, applicable to Dominica. It aims to alleviate the considerable backlog of high court civil cases in Dominica, worsened by the impact of Hurricane Maria, which happened in 2017. The practice direction puts in place a framework where a judge or master can engage in and facilitate settlement discussions between parties. Once the ongoing settlement conference sensitization has been completed, Litigants and Dominica will have a disposal, another timely and cost-effective alternative to the conventional way of resolving civil disputes in addition to mediation. I wish to express my gratitude to his lordship, Justice Vahid Khukharam, judge of the Court of Appeal of Trinidad and Tobago, a passionate mediator and a person engaged in judicial settlement conferences in the state of Trinidad and Tobago, and her ladyship, Justice Jacqueline Josiah Greyhound, who have been spearheading this initiative on the ground in Dominica. The Cajos Seventh Biennial Conference. It would be inexcusable if I were to omit from this address what was perhaps among the more significant events on the Court's calendar last year. In October of 2022, the Court had the pleasure of hosting the Caribbean Association of Judicial Officers Seventh Biennial Conference. The Cajot Conference, which was held under the theme Caribbean Judiciary in a Changing World, saw over 150 judicial officers from across the Caribbean gathered for three days in St. Lucia, the host state of the courts and quarters. The signal events on the conference program were keynotes by the Honorable Mia Motley, Senior Counsel, Crime Minister of Barbados, and Professor Trevor Monroe, Executive Director of the National Integrity Action, Jamaica. Both keynote speakers examined from different perspectives the role of the judiciary in the new and in many respects, volatile landscape that is our changing world. By all accounts, their observations were quite inspiring and thought-provoking in respect of ideas for deepening judicial integration in our Caribbean region. Over three days, judicial officers broaden their understanding of areas and a wide range of legal and socio-legal topics. Given its shared scale, the conference required the help of several members of the staff of the courts and quarters comprising our local organizing committee working alongside the Cajun organizing committee to plan and execute. I take this opportunity here to thank the members of the local organizing committee who through their hard work and dedication to the task helped to make the Cajun Seventh Annual Biennial Conference by all accounts a tremendous success. I come now to a topic which Cannon Reed signed on. Spoke up also this month in his comment to us. Emerging from the Cajun conference was an issue of great concern for all Caribbean democracies, which I must touch on. That issue of waning public confidence in the justice system, which has increasingly been affecting judiciaries across the globe and also our judiciary. Why is this a dire problem? Simply put, it is the trust and confidence of the public which gives courts their very legitimacy to dispense justice. Cannon Reed Simon spoke about this in his well-delivered comedy. He spoke about delays in justice and challenged us to do what is justice, righteousness and justice. When members of the public lose faith in the institution of the judiciary and its authority, they are more likely to take matters into their own hands. This is a most undesirable state of affairs and it must be avoided at all costs. And so the question is this, how can we as judicial officers, as members of the legal profession, be more responsive to what is emerging as a growing lack of confidence in the system's ability to meet the needs of ordinary people? In my view, we must do all that we can to promote public trust and confidence in the work that we do each day by continuing to faithfully perform the duties of your office, be it on the bench or be it at the bar. We must adhere faithfully to our ethical standards and at all times striving to conduct ourselves with integrity and professionalism. This includes for us as judges honoring the time standards for delivery of decisions. Litigants must be able to feel when or lose that the system was responsive to the applied. What struck me about what Cannon Reed-Simon said this morning is not that the system cannot work. It is really the delays which are causing a loss of confidence in the justice system and we must do all that we can to improve on that. I will mention here that several measures aimed at promoting public confidence in the justice system have been implemented over the past few years. We have published sentencing guidelines which add transparency to the sentencing process. Very shortly, the Sentencing Guidelines Committee will be constituted for moving forward. We have also revised our Code of Judicial Conduct to incorporate modern ethical standards and time standards for the delivery of judgments by judicial officers. Both the Sentencing Guidelines and the Code of Judicial Conduct are drafted in simple language and made available to the public. Judgments and comprehensive case statistics are also routinely published on the court's website. So please go online, pay the court's website a visit. We have also recently entered the social media space through our Facebook page to better engage with the public. It is recognized, however, that there is more to be done to build public confidence in the justice system while simultaneously maintaining the court's independence and impartiality. Initiatives which the court endeavors to embark on during this law year include increased public education programs. I don't think we are doing enough of that. That is another topic that Cannon Reed touched upon this morning. So I think he is right and target and clearly has to say it's the ground in terms of those matters which are affecting our communities. These sorts of programs will enable members of the public to better appreciate what the court can and cannot do and better equip them to manage their expectations accordingly. Also in the pipeline is a special project aimed at auditing the work of the high court officers for areas of improvement. The court offices are in every respect the doorways to the court. If you cannot get through the door of the court offices, then how do you access judges of the court for hearing your matters? It is a critical integral part of the court's process. We hope to attract the necessary funding needed to undertake this project. An updated and detailed strategic plan for the court is also in process and will include public participation. We want the public's views, how well our process is working, what's not working. We must be able to gauge those responses from the public that we serve. And these measures we hope, when pulled together, will help the court to enable the changing tides with the full support and confidence of the people it serves. As with institutions which must keep pace with the changing times, appointments end and new ones meet. Commit me now to officially welcome to the High Court Bench a Ladyship, the Honourable Madam Jacqueline Josiah Graham, who was appointed as a High Court Judge in the 1st of September, 2022, assigned to the Commonwealth of Dominica. Her Ladyship, the Honourable Madam Tamara Gill, who was elevated to the post of High Court Judge, assigned to St. Kitts and Nivis, effective on the 1st of January, 2023. And her Ladyship, the Honourable Miss Ingrid Mangatulman Roe, who was appointed to act as a judge of the commercial division of the High Court in the territory of the Virgin Islands, effective the 1st of January, 2023. I also warmly welcome Master Alvin Carriac-Sink and Master Carlos Michel, who were appointed as Masters of the High Court in May and September of 2022, respectively. I extend best wishes for an enlightening and mutually beneficial tenure on the bench of the Eastern Caribbean Spring Port. Last year, we also bid farewell to two judicial officers and the persons of his Ladyship, the Honourable Adrian Jack, High Court Judge of the Commercial Division in the territory of the Virgin Islands and Master Sharon Gardner-Hipplett. I take this opportunity to express my gratitude to Justice Jack and Master Gardner-Hipplett for their service to the port and by extension to the people of the OECS. I wish them the very best in their future endeavors. I also wish to thank the many persons who assisted the port by taking up acting judicial appointments over the last year. The court, as we know our court, is in a constant state of change and in a constant state of need for assistance. Last year also, it was with great sadness that we mourned the passing in September 2022 of prominent jurist retired Justice Harold Thomas. Justice Thomas joined the bench as a High Court Judge in 2002. He faithfully served until his retirement in 2013 and thereafter in a number of member states in an acting capacity. He also acted as a justice of appeal from time to time. He served the court with distinction. We are grateful to him for his significant contribution towards jurisprudence and extend our deepest condolences to his family. On a more cheerful note, I must recognize the efforts of the persons who have ensured that this court has adhered to its mandate for the last 55 years and their commitment to soldier on into the future. Firstly, the judicial officers of this court, including of course our magistrates who work tirelessly every day, often under less than optimal conditions and with insufficient resources, but who continue to ensure that justice is done. Secondly, and behind the scenes, the registrars and support staff working at various levels at the courts at quarters and constituent court offices in each of the member states and territories who do year-months work. I have remarked many times that their vital contributions often go unnoticed. This lack of recognition should cease. I can only thank them for all that they have done and continue to do in making the court the institution that it is today. I also cannot overlook the tremendous support of the OECS Bar Association and the constituent Bar Association of the Eastern Caribbean. I thank you for remaining devoted to the cause of justice and the development of the legal profession in our region. It is also important now that I recognize our external partners and stakeholders all that we have accomplished and could not have done without their additional support. I wish to express our unyielding gratitude to the Juris' Project, Impact Justice, the United States Embassy and the British High Commission, UNICEF, UN Women, the University of the West Indies, UNDP, USAID, and particularly the governments of our member states and territories for their continued support for the court's mandate of improving access to justice across and at all levels of the justice system. To all those persons and organizations who I have not specifically mentioned, your support has not gone unnoticed and we are forever grateful for your assistance. We recognize that while the court has made great strides in the 55 years, we have only glimpsed the shores of our destination and so we will continue to sail purposefully towards that destination through unexpected storms and waves of change and without doubting for a moment that the court will remain resilient no matter how rough the tide. Like a sailor in rough seas, it is my hope that the court will emerge stronger and better equipped to ensure equitable access to justice and to deliver effective justice to the people of this region. I pray that the Almighty God will guide us and give us the courage to stay the course. May the sails of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court continue to fly high as we navigate through the changing chives towards the justice system of the future. I thank you. I will now hand over to Master of Ceremonies his lordship, the Honorable Erwin Moise. Ladies' ship, the Honorable Dean Janice M. Pereira, DBE, LLD, the Chief Justice of our OECS Supreme Court, the Excellencies, the Heads of the various States of the OECS Member States and Territory, the Honorable Heads of Government, the various OECS Member States and Territories, the Honorable Justices of Appeal, Judges and Masters of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court. Otherwise, I would wish to adopt the Protocolist which has already been established by our Chief Justice. And I say good morning to all of you. It's all right to say good morning in court. So I say good morning. Let me welcome everyone of you to this special sitting to mark the opening of the Law Year 2023. It is the first of its kind in the last few years and so we are quite happy as the Territory of OECS to be hosting our Chief Justice and the Court of Appeal. I am Justice Erwin Moise and I am the resident High Court Judge in Angola. I'm tempted to say it's the nicest country in the OECS but I am Saint Lucien. So you will forgive me for thinking otherwise but welcome to Angola and welcome to this special sitting to mark the opening of the Law Year 2023. As has already been intimated by our Chief Justice, the year's opening has adopted a blended approach with some of our speakers in person and some will be appearing virtually as we continue to embrace this technology as we move closer and closer to the time of traditions. We have not abandoned our courtrooms and we are happy to be back in this blended approach. So we have some of our speakers who will be in person and having heard from the Honorable Chief Justice I have no doubt that all of you are inspired and we look forward to the continued improvement of our justice system and our own commitments to make sure that that happens as we navigate these changing tides. So at this point in the proceedings we will hear from members of the public and the private bar from each of our member states and territories and the first person that we will hear from today is the Honorable Attorney General of Angola. And that is the Honorable Dwight Cosford who was appointed as the Attorney General in Angola in October 2018. He has served as the Resident Director of the Regional Law Revision Center. He has received legal training at the U Wooding Law School in Trinidad and Tobago and the University of the West Indies Cable Campus in Barbados. Prior to his appointment as Attorney General he has served as the Solicitor General of Grenada from 2013 to 2018. And so to address us closely this morning I would like to call on the Attorney General of Angola who will be presenting the Attorney General of the OECS as well as Angola this morning with the hospital. May it please the court. I rise in happy association with the sentiments just expressed in the address by Malawi Chief Justice Madam Chief Justice My Lords, my ladies on special occasions such as this one certainly in the context of our recent pandemic experience one's always tempted to give a long speech a problem of long speeches that not only run the risk of war in the audience but the other pitfalls that making long speeches it is told that the weak philosopher Socrates gave a long speech and right after his friends poisoned it I can assure you Madam Chief Justice, my Lords, my ladies I would not exhaust myself minutes a lot into me or even exceed it May I say my lady it is my pleasant duty and signal honour to offer brief remarks on behalf of colleague Attorneys General of the States and Territories platform part of the jurisdiction of our Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court a judiciary and a court system that is very highly and widely regarded as second to not something of which you all immensely proud in making these remarks which shortly follow I wish to say that in as much as my reflections relate some common experiences of many of my colleagues reviews I express here today are my own as I am conscious that colleagues and speakers that follow me but ought to follow shortly will no doubt have and will express various topical views of their own including reflections on the theme of this years address by our distinguished Chief Justice Madam Chief Justice my Lords, my ladies we have this morning witnessed a very historic and moving event and my dad that it may go down in history that the ceremonial opening of the new law year 2023 in Anguilla one of the most significant openings in the history of the court not only for its symbolic importance since the beginning of the global coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic but since the introduction and extensive use of the technological tools of electronic litigation filing and virtual hearings of the court throughout the states and territories of the jurisdiction of the court achievements which are the formats of a modern justice system Madam Chief Justice my Lords, my ladies the COVID-19 pandemic not only interrupted the normal time or sittings of the court and operations of our court but as I want to imagine it negatively impacted the work of attorneys general chambers around the region the onslaught of the pandemic forced us and forced upon us restrictions and public health measures which separated us physically from one another and slowed the work of chambers particularly legislative and parliamentary business that form a very integral part of the work of chambers the emergency measures taken under the public health act and similar legislation became the predominant legislative activity during that period for considerable periods parliament could not meet in the usual fashion neither could collegiate meetings be done in person or take place result had to be had to virtual and electronic means such as zoom and another one that I became familiar with teams platforms in order for the business of the chambers and by extension government to continue the pandemic experience over the last two years has introduced us to ourselves in other ways other very important ways the unusual nature and urgency of the times which visited us drove human efficiency in our colleagues and parliamentary council up to heights which exceeded all expectations many of our colleagues work remotely but effectively punctually and expertly afford legal support to the health risk management and mitigation efforts of all of governments and their agencies the experience of the pandemic as a feature of the changing times Madame Chief Justice my Lords and the ladies was a mixture of challenges and gain before long in late 2020 and most of 2021 we were able to return to physical meetings and full parliamentary and governmental functions such as we had before and several legislative measures which were of broader reach than counter pandemic responses were passed in a normal course of business 2022 was a year of even greater stride in return like the supreme court chambers adapted with renewed figure and purpose despite the ubiquitous COVID-19 conditions looking ahead we must pause to reflect on aspects of the COVID-19 impact upon our work and surely that of the court pandemic conditions warranted immediate and intrusive restrictions on human life as we know it the measures taken which were designed to mitigate the public health risks associated with the health crisis meant that personal liberties and freedoms were implicated freedom of movement and assembly and the right to personal autonomy to name a few were directly impacted but we were mindful always that those counter measures should not be more than was proportional to meet the mystery of the day novel questions of the constitutionality of those measures necessarily and rightly arose such as those that had to restrict individual movement and those which in some of our states and territories were devised for mandatory vaccination of persons that curb the spread of the disease many of those issues have been resolved without the courts intervention thankfully and the small few have recently had the judgment of the judicial committee of the Privy Council upon them indeed the tides are changing and as such the theme for this year's opening has been suitably chosen in this context emerging from that experience we look to the future with the lessons of the past but nonetheless regardless that the new controversies that new very new controversies arise as the tides indeed changed the question of individual freedom and dignity brought into focus by the restrictions of the pandemic period continues to be the primary focus of the courts the public the private bars are like in recent times on this new frontier Madame Chief Justice Milord's ladies courts are now being asked courts are now being asked to take up peculiar power in the policy of conduct now at the two steps of the judiciary in some jurisdictions the court is called upon to determine what it is to be a woman or a man to be male or female something which for centuries seem to be a conspicuous new pastime exercise is now a matter of staggering the courts are now called upon even to view the old institutional marriage not as unidimensional but multi-dimensional equally interesting is the matter of free speech and to what extent speech becomes violence in the context of respect for the rights of others their personal choices and lifestyle courts these are not only challenges of changing tides that the court must grapple with but the matters which we all must at some point at some time can give for us at the Attorney General's Jamers in Angola the receding tide of the pandemic is a welcome relief moving forward our legislative and reform agenda is exciting and interesting we hope very shortly to introduce the House Assembly and pass certain legislative initiative such as administration of justice special provisions bill a measure a bit omnibus in nature that will feature new reforms such as anonymity orders special measures for victims intimidated and vulnerable witnesses judge alone trials and the like a new electronic evidence bill a new evidence bill criminal proceedings expungement of records bill a measure quite in keeping with what your leadership has just expressed in your speech today regarding restorative justice particularly with young people decriminalization of cannabis or that is to be distinguished from legalization decriminalization is a measure of regulation drug abuse prevention and mitigation not legalization because we have certain treaty obligations incumbent upon us to prevent market economy in illicit drugs and to improve public health we also hope in conjunction with our colleagues at the bar to at least feature a homegrown draft of a matrimonial causes bill for Anguilla and these are just the name of few of these initiatives Madame Chief Justice Malone's Ladies, your presence here today in Anguilla on behalf of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court have afforded us a great honor very great honor to bear with us that the court and indeed the administration of justice in our sub-region is thriving on diminished and vigorous purpose and certainly in very good hands despite the interregnum of the COVID-19 pandemic I'm so pleased you with these statements I wish to thank you Madame Chief Justice for affording me the opportunity to address the court of a very special occasion marking the opening of the court Thank you Thank you Mr. Hospital as we look forward to continue to work with the Office of the Attorney General and the offices of the various from the various member states and territories or whatever initiatives that are necessary to move the justice system along I also thank you for not being tempted to give a long speech and we assure you that had you not been so tempted that you would not have poisoned you The next speaker is Senator the Honourable Claudette Joseph who is the Attorney General and the Minister of Legal Affairs, Labour and Consumer Affairs in the island of Grenada The Honourable Claudette Joseph was called to the bar in Grenada in 1996 She received her legal training at the U-Wording Law School in Trinidad and Tobago and the University of the West Cable Campus and she had a distinguished professional and legal career In 2002, the Honourable Claudette Joseph was appointed a Senator in the Parliament of Grenada and she has held a post of Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs since July 2022 and so to address on behalf of the Ministers of Legal Affairs of the OECS and as a representative of Grenada we call on the Senator, the Honourable Claudette Joseph Ladies and gentlemen Chief Justice of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court Dame Janice Pereira Your Excellencies Covenants General Another Honourable Heads of State Present Other Justices of Appeal Madam Justice Paula Guilford and other Justices of the High Court Masters Fellow Attorneys General Colleague Honourable Ministers of Government Chief and other Senior Magistrates Other Government Officials Officials from the OECS Commission Director of Public Prosecution Solicitors General Other Court Staff Registrar of the Court of Appeal and Registrar of the various High Courts My Lady I am honoured and indeed humbled to have been asked to address this sitting here today to mark the opening of the Law Year 2023 On behalf of the Government and people of Grenada I take this opportunity to extend best wishes to you and your families for the new year and pray that it will be one filled with good health prosperity and lots of love My Lady My Lords The Honourable Prime Minister Mr. Deacon Mitchell sends his warm and fraternal greetings to all of his colleagues in this noble profession My Lady, permit me to avail this opportunity to extend heartfelt congratulations on behalf of all of us here at the Grenada Bar to the newly appointed Justices of Appeal and specifically the Justices Price Findlay and Ellis both of whom had their judicial feet wet right here in Grenada and so we are particularly proud of them Congratulations has also extended to the newly appointed judges and Masters of the Court and might I again be a little biased and specifically recognise our very own Justice Tamara Gill of whom again we are very proud In the environment where the average Caribbean citizen yearns for a more integrated and unified region our Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court stands out as a model regional institution and I borrow that phrase from my learned and distinguished colleague Dr. Francis Alexis sitting right here from his work published on May 40th anniversary of the Court the successes it has enjoyed in the face of ever-changing and challenging circumstances makes it one of the most admired and proactive change agents of our Caribbean community the successes of this Court would not be possible without the support of our respective governments over the years this support comes mainly through the offices of the Attorneys General and Ministers for Legal Affairs and Justice Milady Milans our sub region our sub region continues to face significant challenges on account of constant and rapid economic social and technological changes globally these challenges include the global rise in the price of food and other basic commodities ongoing impacts the ongoing impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic the adverse impacts of climate change unemployment and unemployment escalating crime and cyber and other security threats although the although the concatenation of these challenges adds strength to the Court as an institution the Court with the support of governments of all the member states and territories continues to make significant advances as it navigates the changing types as a collective we must continue to work together towards institutional strengthening Milady in this regard most jurisdictions are putting the necessary legislative framework in place to make this a reality legislative changes to ensure the integration of the magistrates Court into the High Court or into the operations of the Supreme Court amendments to the criminal courts some of which were alluded to by my learned friend Attorney General Dwight Horsford and changes to permit judge alone trials laws that will support the transition to a fully digitized system are some of the matters that are well enshrined to support the digital transformation agenda of the government and the court my government will facilitate the passage of three foundational pieces of legislation and they include the data protection bill the electronic communication bill and the payment systems and services bill these will shortly be tabled before the local parliament and the service through other parliaments of the OECS Milady the court supported by the respective government has been embracing technology for greater effectiveness and efficiencies despite many challenges of the COVID-19 the pandemic no doubt accelerated our movement towards the digital paper less court the launch of the litigation portal has greatly enhanced efficiency and transparency transparency in the functions of the court and its offices it also compliments the shift to mostly virtual hearings forced on us by the pandemic moving the operations of the court in a digital direction also synchronized as well with the thrust of most of our countries to move all of government's operation to digital and paper less in Grenada we are encouraged to we are encouraged in all life matters to move all life matters the litigation portal let me take that again so my colleagues can clearly understand what I'm saying we at the government level are encouraging practitioners to move all life matters onto the litigation portal and the rules allow for this to be done by consent of the parties because we are moving to a fully digitized operation we are going to be digitizing our records in the court system we have identified digital and physical transformation as key components in the efforts to move our country forward in this regard a policy direction has been assumed applicable across all governments government departments that allows for printing of no more than 5 pages at a time but for the forward thinking of your leadership but for the forward thinking that your leadership continues to offer this court this policy of no more than 5 pages to be printed would have significantly in fact impacted the operations of the court luckily for us the operations of the court move forward ahead of that of the rest of government so that the implementation of this policy in the legal complex of government will be more or less seamless and we have to thank your leadership and the leadership you have provided to this court for that Malay our government of the subregion are cognizant of the fact that digital transformation must be accompanied and adherence to the rule of law the judiciary and support staff must be adequately accommodated and well equipped in this regard the states and territories are focused on providing enhanced facilities for the judiciary in Grenada construction of a new state of the art hall of justice that will incorporate environmental friendly and renewable energy technologies is scheduled to begin in early 2024 as we use the rest of this year to complete all preliminary works I know other jurisdictions for example, Central Asia are preparing for similar projects Malay Malay the respective governments have continued to support the court financially and although contributions are not always as timely as required the court has been able to survive and in some instances thrive as a regional institution meeting the needs of all people Malay I think however the court evolves and matures into an even greater regional success story our governments should give consideration to embracing a new more efficient method of financing the court the establishment of a trust fund akin to that used by the Caribbean court of justice might be considered it will afford the court financial independence the financial independence that it needs in perpetuity and thus greater insulation from other influences and much needed regular room to execute on its development agenda Malay we are very familiar with the day-to-day challenges and sometimes unnecessary and very avoidable hardships that our judiciary has had to endure I'm ranging from global issues that the leadership so ably highlighted to more granular hardships such as inadequate security and inadequate residential accommodation and in some instances even late and non-payment of salaries and utilities an independently financed court will eliminate these hardships strengthen this essential and co-equal arm of government and set us on course to elevate democracy in our region to the next level Malay the I submit that as we the minister the ministers for legal affairs and justice endeavor to better serve the people who elected us to enhance this delivery it is incumbent on all of us to find the new ways to support the work of the court in that regard we must make deliberate efforts to invest in building the technological the technical and human resources capacity of our respective ministries continuous training of technical and support staff will help raise the overall standard of the services that we provide to the public we must ensure that the court offices in our respective jurisdictions are properly staffed and equipped in this regard I am happy to share with your leadership and with the court in general and indeed I am proud to disclose that the my government has begun to do just that in strengthening our human resource and technical capacity for this financial year just approved nine additional staff to the court office here in Grenada and these include an additional deputy registrar specifically responsible for deeds and lands a deputy mediation coordinator and two additional staff for the mediation unit and the senior administrative officer we have also millennium I am happy to announce secure equipment physical space and staff to deal directly with the longstanding and fixing issue of the court reporting unit and the preparation of trial transcripts the lady in this celebrated Caribbean one the late black Stalin reminds us that as simple we are one race from the same place that made the same trip on the same ship and therefore we must forge ahead together pursuing one common intention for better lives for all our women children and indeed our men folk as the first truly indigenous regional court this court is a natural vehicle through which we can forge ahead as one Caribbean people I on behalf of the government and people of Grenada encourage my colleague ministers and other government officials of all the member states and territories that we must remain resolute in our commitment to sustainable development and equal access to justice for all our people let us therefore continue to work together for together we are stronger and as we go stronger as we navigate the change in times as one we most definitely will move our region and its people forward to come on safer waters as it pleases the court the Grenadines Ms Brown was called to the bar of St. Vincent and the Grenadines in September 2000 prior to becoming Chief Magistrate she worked as a private legal practitioner and then transitioned to the public sector where she served successfully as president of the family court in acting capacity and as senior magistrate she has served as Chief Magistrate since September 2014 and to present the address on behalf of the magistracy of the OECS and as a representative of St. Vincent and the Grenadines I present to you her honor Ms. Sureshann Brown Mathias the Chief Magistrate of St. Vincent and the Grenadines Thank you Thank you Chief Justice of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court Honorable Lady Dame Janice Pereira Justices of Appeal Judges and Masters of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court Excellencies, Governors General and their Excellencies Heads of State of each OECS Member State and Territory Honorable Heads of Government of each of the OECS Member States and Territories Retired Judges of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court Honorable Attorneys General Chief Magistrates Senior Magistrates and Magistrates of each OECS Member State and Territory Directors of Public Prosecution of each OECS Member State and Territory Solicitors General of each OECS Member State and Territory of the Inner and Utter Bar Commissioners of Police and Police Officers Directors and Heads of Correctional Facilities Staff of the Courted Quarters and Court Officers in the OECS Member States and Territories Citizens in Residence of the Eastern Caribbean I would like to start by making what I hope by now is an obvious point. The Magistrates Court is fundamental to the administration of justice in the Eastern Caribbean. I was looking at the local prison statistics from a recent year the other day and I noticed that 231 of the inmates were sentenced by the Magistrates Court. By contrast just 116 inmates were sentenced by the High Court. This reflects a ratio of almost exactly 2 to 1. I am sure that the same type of ratio will be found in the other jurisdictions of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court. Be assured I am not suggesting that magistrates be paid twice as much as the judicial officers of the High Court. However it seems clear to me that the brunt of the case workload is carried by magistrates. We are on the front line of the judicial system. It holds to reason that the concerns and consideration of the magistrates must be given due care and attention if we are to be true to the process of strengthening the administration of justice in our subregion. In other words to strengthen justice we must strengthen the magistrates. This special sitting to commemorate the opening of the law year 2023 was convened under the following act and appropriate title. The Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court navigating the changing times. The times have certainly changed on account of the COVID-19 pandemic. However I think it is commendable that we did not allow this fact to derail our journey to the promised land of justice. We found creative and innovative ways to continue to conduct hearings and trials in the interest of justice and minimize disruption to the court. Our disposition was to keep the physical doors of the court open as far as possible. We believe that online hearings are not the same as in-person hearings. We believe that we cannot ignore the social dimension or element of human nature and behavior. I am sure that many persons would agree that an online date is very different from an in-person date and that an online hug is different from an in-person hug. The same logic applies to matters of the court. In relation to the application of online technology in the course of our jobs we have to constantly ask ourselves about its impact on the integrity and desirability of our practice and procedure. Accordingly I would like to commend my colleague magistrates across the subregion for the remarkable resilience that they showed in relation to this matter. As a case in point the magistrates court in Dominica was only closed for six weeks in 2020 and two weeks in 2021. The court has been exemplary in preserving and protecting access to justice. This is not worthy and praiseworthy. Naturally all necessary sanitary and hygiene measures were put in place. I would also like to highlight that the magistrates court at Rosa Dominica has been consolidated under one roof after operation for a period of time from different locations. I call this progress towards the ideal. In St. Vincent and the United States our board of justice was also buffeted on its sides by volcanic eruptions. I am sure we engendered the sympathy born of painful experience of our colleagues in Montserrat. However we persevered through the storms until the ultimate judge in our vessel said peace be still. I would also like to thank the members of the court for their care and judicious outcomes for citizens. Despite our preference for in-person court we recognize the value of online innovation with respect to some aspects of court practice. We welcome the introduction of online remands in some of our member states and the personnel resources for transportation of relevant persons to and from court. I believe that online hearings for remands should be an enduring part of our legal practice. We at the level of the magistracy embrace the prospect of filing court documents online and look forward to the day when this practice will trick all of us. Meanwhile we are trying to reconcile the online filing of court documents with the fact that it is often necessary for a hard copy of these documents to be served on parties to the case and the fact that very often these documents are printed out for review by case officers. I am afraid that there are no easy answers to the question of what is the best approach for the management of our affairs. Equally we sometimes wonder if the constitutional principles of separation of the independence of the judiciary are reserved for the higher echelons of the justice system. We hope to see progress on fundamental matters such as security of tenure and the regionalization of the magistracy. I believe that it is necessary to address the problem of the prevalence of gun-related crimes through legislative intervention. In light of the confines of a five-minute speech I have to stop here. I look forward to an opportunity for further ventilation of these matters in the fullness of time. I wish the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court a productive lawyer as we navigate the changing times. I'm sure we remember the words of our Chief Justice in our own speech that as we continue to work together to strengthen the work of the magistracy because we do recognize that without the magistracy as the backbone especially of our criminal justice system much of the work would not get done. So we commend you for your work and we thank you for your contribution to the special sitting this morning. Our next speaker comes from the Nature Isle. Every Isle of the Caribbean has a special name. Dominica is in Nature Isle and now we go to Dominica where we will hear from Shilma Dalarimpa who is the director of public prosecutions acting in that island. Ms. Dalarimpa was called to the bar the comrade of Dominica in 2009. She's a graduate of the U Wooding Law School and by the way, we see that almost every speaker has come from the U Wooding Law School. We're celebrating 75 years this year and so we commend the law school on its own milestone. And she is graduated from the U Wooding Law School and began her legal career as a state attorney in the attorney general's chambers in Dominica. In 2012, she transitioned to criminal practice serving as a state prosecutor in the office of the director of public prosecutions and she serves as the acting director of that office. Ms. Dalarimpa serves as a member of the Air and Seaport Licensing Board a director of the National Development Foundation as well. She also serves as a lecturer in paralegal studies and corporate and partnership law in at the Dominica State College. Ms. Dalarimpa prides herself on being a career civil servant who holds strong to the belief of service to country above all and so to address this issue. We now turn to Ms. Shilma Dalarimpa. May it please you, Madam Chief Justice, and justices of appeal. Greetings from the Nature Island of the Caribbean Dominica. I wish to first adopt the protocol already established. A prosecutor's main rule is mainly carried out in the courtroom. That is the role of being a minister in the pursuit of justice and the rule of law. With the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic and spikes in the number of cases in our various OECS jurisdictions, this somewhat proved very challenging. The prosecutors among us for sure would know that too many there is no place like home but to us there is no place like the courtroom. Within our various jurisdictions, we used the opportunity as a time to showcase our resilience as attorneys and ministers of justice. To us, prior to COVID-19, we small island states were frequently left to consider the issue of climate resilience and sustainable living. And with the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic, we as attorneys had to look at resilience in the context as to how we were going to continue the work that we do. A career that dictates that we must speak to one another, we must be in the courtroom and in briefings and meetings. Social distances we did not know of. Resilience in respect to our fraternity had to now be considered. Were we to remain shut in with our families and allow cases to be adjourned at the expense of justice and the rights of the accused because of the dreaded pandemic? Were we to sit home and allow the wills of justice to come to a grinding halt? Haven't spoken to my colleagues in other jurisdictions under the fact that I am here in a crowded courtroom in Dominica with several of my colleagues. I can say that we have made it through the worst and we will continue navigating. Our resilience was clearly shown through the enactment of legislation which allowed for us to use technology social media and the internet by our various courts conducting hearings and case management through Zoom and other platforms. That is remotely from the confines of our homes and offices. At this stage though it appears that we are in the clear and the COVID-19 cases have gone down significantly I now urge us to consider the term resilience in the context as what resilience means for our legal fraternity. COVID-19 has left us to now consider that in the world we live we have to learn to thrive in the face of adversity and to successfully adapt to disruptions in our life balance. We in Dominica over the past eight years have had to deal with a tropical storm, a category five hurricane and then the pandemic. So we know we always have to prepare for the unexpected. I wish to emphasize that COVID-19 has taught us that to be resilient we have to develop purpose and deep commitment to our goals which is the pursuit of justice and the rule of law. When a challenge comes in the way of justice we must work out a solution. Secondly when we establish this commitment to the work that we do we ought to frequently audit ourselves consider our competence and effectiveness as attorneys. We need to regularly consider our purpose and whether these rules are being carried out. Are we giving a veto war? Are we allowing a picture of me like a turtle next to a turtle? Are they being afforded the rights given to them under our constitution? So I look like I really understand what are we giving our close of clear these rules or clear these peaks. In the face of adversity and climate change pandemics or anything threatens our normalcy once we remain rooted have been carried out of our rules and we continue to consider our weaknesses and whether we are being committed or resilient with you. I look like several others to practice during this depressing pandemic we had to go through to the 8th week and to be rooted in our sense of purpose in the face of adversity. For sure law school never prepared us for a pandemic. However, we were taught that the law is dynamic and ever changing and as such, this in itself means that being part of this fertility, we have to adapt to change. Indeed, navigating the changing tides is fully dependent on the legions we owe to the tenants of the legal profession. In closing, I say to the courts and to all my colleagues and members of this noble profession have a productive and effective lot. May you continue to navigate the changing tides of our justice system and legal system with honor and commitment. All right, we thank you Miss Larimble for your contribution to this special sitting and we continue to wish the Nature Island well in this coming law year. We move on now to the territory of the Virgin Islands where we are going to hear a presentation from Mr. Michael Faye, King's Council Mr. Faye is a partner of the ABVI law and has practiced the law in the territory of the Virgin Islands since 1996. His legal practice spans commercial dispute resolution, constitutional law, and real estate development. He also sits as an arbitrator. Mr. Faye has had a distinguished legal career. In 2013, he was appointed as a member of the inner bar and he currently sits on several committees and government advisory bodies in the territory of the Virgin Islands. He has also done short stints as an acting high court judge and justice of appeal of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court and so to address us on behalf of the inner bar and as a representative of the territory of the Virgin Islands we call on Mr. Michael Faye, King's Council. Good morning, Honorable Chief Justice Justice of Appeals and Mr. Justice Moynes. Thank you for inviting me to speak at this opening and on the topic of the changing times. The protocol has been established and I wouldn't want to upset or add to it so I merely adopt it. In order I propose to repeat the comments made earlier welcoming the new judges both into the High Court and the Court of Appeal and I merely add my name to those comments. As Mr. Justice Moynes just said, I've been asked to speak together with my friend Peter Foster King's Council on behalf of the inner bar and on behalf of the BVI. Now, we all know that those of us privileged to have been admitted to the inner bar tend to have our own individualistic views and rarely ask envy to speak on behalf. I therefore merely hold myself as a member of the inner bar who was fortunate enough to be invited to speak today rather than holding myself as a spokesperson for the hold in the inner bar. I hope and trust that other members of the inner bar will at least share some of my views but the views are mine and mine alone. I'm not in the British Virgin Islands today and therefore not have the opportunity to discuss what I might say this morning with my fellow members of the bar attending the Court hearing in the territory. Again, so I therefore speak as a member of the BVI bar and not strictly on its part. So, 2022, it's been a relatively tough year in BVI as it has in other parts of our Court. I'm pleased to say that to a very great extent although not completely we've moved on from the destruction and post hurricane recovery period towards a period of development and improvement. Perhaps the most dramatic events other than Covid which of course affected the hold of the Court and indeed the hold of the world was publication in the British Virgin Islands of the Commission of Inquiry report and the unrelated arrest of the former Premier in Miami. Given that those matters have not been resolved I won't say very much about them. However, what I can say is that it was perhaps surprising that so little of the Commission of Inquiry was subject to the Court's review. Indeed, as far as I'm aware the only cases that did come before the Court didn't concern its actual weight work per se but related to the question of whether the Commission of Inquiry lawyers were entitled to perform their functions in the BVI without being admitted to the BVI bar. Unfortunately, the Commission of Inquiry concluded its work and the lawyers left the territory before that issue was determined. Whilst the UK Government declined to accept the primary recommendation of the Commission of Inquiry to suspend the Constitution and impose direct rule and still a threat to do so but irrespective of whether the UK Government changes its mind it's absolutely apparent that the implementation of some of the Commission of Inquiry recommendations will impose a significant burden in particular on the Royal Virgin Islands Police Force and others to investigate matters identified by the Commission of Inquiry. A number of related criminal proceedings have been commenced and there's possibility that maybe war proceedings are due course which will of course affect the court and I will return to that effect in a moment. So what I propose to do is say something about the performance of the courts and the e-portal in the BVI during the last year. So my sense and once again I stress it's my sense is that most civil practitioners are relatively happy with the performance of the High Court and the Commercial Court and in particular they are happy with the performance of the High Court. In the High Court we lost Justice Gillette who now wants the Court to appeal as we've heard but we have a strong replacement in Justice Felix Evans who's been sitting for a number of months and by all accounts from what I've heard and my experience of her is she's been very well received into the territory. As the Chief Justice mentioned we lost Justice Jack but have gained Justice Magneton Monroe into the Commercial Court and Justice Magneton Monroe has just started sitting. The Civil High Court in the British Virgin Islands primarily conducts its hearings in person but the Commercial Court still does almost all its hearings practically all of its hearings by Zoom. It's my belief that most practitioners in the British Virgin Islands like the blended approach that the Chief Justice discussed earlier but have a desire that the Commercial Court should revert to in-person hearings for anything but the most simplest of applications and directions so standard directions a single issue, some re-judgment applications that sort of thing but where there are multiple issues to be resolved I think most people in the territory would like to see the Court revert to in-person hearings. What I think a lot of people are against is some counsel appearing remotely and some counsel appearing in the Court that doesn't seem to work very well. I think it's very difficult for the judges to manage the involvement of counsel on the telephone with counsel in the Court. Some judges well I just don't think it works and I think a number of people think that and I think we should go back stay with the blended approach but have hearings either in person or once in a while. As I mentioned the ePortal has been very warmly welcomed in the territory it's now used in the High Court it's a shame it doesn't extend to older matters and I wonder whether it would be possible to look even if we don't migrate all the existing filings of old matters onto the ePortal but all new filings could be made on the ePortal. So that's the High Court and the Commercial Division. The Magistrates Court has reverted in person to most hearings for both civil and criminal matters say that it's my experience that the Magistrates in the civil cases are still using Zoom for relatively simple matters such as mentions of taxing dates and that I think is a sensible approach. The recent introduction of the ePortal into the Magistrates Court is very welcome. So once it's not my particular area of practice I understand that in the territory there are still lengthy delays in the criminal court. We've had various deputy judges come to the island and they have done as well as they could be expected to clear some of the black backlog but there is still more work to be done especially if we're going to have more cases coming out to the Commission of Inquiry it may be possibly necessary to look at staffing issues in the criminal court both in terms of judges and administrative staff but I'm not quite fair to point a finger at the courts or the DPP's office or defence council as being at fault what we simply need to do is they all work together to find a solution. I don't know what the solution is but I know it's not as simple as sending more judges to hear criminal matters because the nature of the territory is that whilst we could facilitate more judges and we could probably find courtrooms for them to sit the availability of criminal defence lawyers and the capacity of the Director of Public Prosecutions office to deal with multiple trials is probably not present. We just don't have enough day in the defence council and the DPP doesn't have a budget for employing enough staff so if we had two more criminal judges I think we would struggle getting council to appear if it's it's a difficult balance if we do have more courts the defendants are going to have to engage council from outside of the territory with other parts of the jurisdiction of the court but that comes at great expense on the other hand the delays in getting trials heard it gives rise to worrying constitutional issues in the territory as I know it does in other parts of the court I was very interested to hear the Honourable Chief Justice's comments about the establishment of the Family Court in Antigua I hope that that's the success and that it may be possible to roll out that out to other member states of the East Cavier Supreme Court including the Virgin Islands in the British Virgin Islands we need to amend the legal profession act in order that it can all be brought into force it's previously amended on three occasions I believe it did twice on the same day but there are still parts of it that make no sense with the result that various provisions have not yet been brought into force including the provisions for admission so in the territory we still rely on admissions pursuant to the the Supreme Court now there are some concerns in the Virgin Islands about legislation being rushed through the House of Assembly with all three readings occasionally occurring on the same day the legal profession act I think is a clear example of legislation that was rushed through without proper thought being given to it and the state of the legal profession act is an embarrassment to the BVI I'm afraid to say so in conclusion can I say this on balance with the exception of the delays in criminal matters which I've already discussed the administration of justice in the BVI is as good as it's been in the 25 years I practiced here Madam Chief Justice you should be pleased with how you've led improvement with the administration of justice unfortunately you need competent individuals to design and implement those changes but it needs leadership your leadership and then you cause the leadership of the next Chief Justice I'm not saying it's perfect in the British Virgin Islands and that further steps are not required but things are in my opinion generally moving in the right direction the tithes will of course continue to change I endorse the comments made by the Learning Director of Public Prosecutions Dominica to the effect that where a challenge arises it simply provides an opportunity for a solution in the 25 years I practiced in this Jewish fiction I've seen huge improvements in the ability of the court to adapt to those changes perhaps the reaction to COVID and in particular the regular tweaks to that adaptation as problems arose show that even when it comes to the administration of justice fortune favours the bold so my Lord ladies those are the comments that I wish to make I wish you a successful 2003 and look forward to the opportunity to appear before you hopefully during the course of the year thank you we extend our thanks to you Mr Faye we are encouraged by what is positive in the British Virgin Islands and hope that we can work together in the year on the coming years to work on the challenges now there is an island in the Caribbean that is so beautiful that the British and the French fought over it 14 times and that even to be you can hear a blend of a French Creole and an English language when you go to that island I warn you if you wish to go back to your home don't go to St Lucia because you may never leave but that is where we're going to now as we turn to the presentation of Mr Peter Foster who will speak on behalf of the inner bar and the head of the West Indies and my home St Lucia Mr Foster is the head of the Parter of Fosters which he founded in 1988 and he was called to the bar of England and Wales in July 1983 and is a member of the Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn in October of that year he was also called to the bar in St Lucia Mr Foster began his legal career as a law firm of Foster and Foster with his father Mr Kenneth Foster QC of Blessed Memory and I was in 1988 when he opened his own law firm in July 2012 he was elevated to the rank of King's Council and Mr Foster specializes in civil and commercial litigation with frequent appearances before the High Court Court of Appeal in the Privy Council and appeals before most of the courts in the Eastern Caribbean although Mr Peter Foster QC with his presentation Thank you May it please you, my lady the Honourable Chief Justice, Madam Dave Janice Pereira Justices of Appeal Judges of the High Court, magistrates Masters Fellow colleagues with your leave I wish to adopt the protocol list already established Good morning The theme for the opening of this new lawyer is a serious and deep one that is relevant to all of our respective jurisdictions and quite frankly throughout every country that has a judicial system In March of 2020 when the realization had dawned on us that we in St Lucia were not going to be shielded from the effects of the COVID-19 virus we were operating and still held court shipping terminal Indeed the fear of what could happen if we were exposed to passengers visiting our shores immediately became apparent Our bar association wrote to our Chief Justice expressing our fears of continuing to attend in-person hearings at this facility We suggested the immediate suspension of our in-person court hearings Our Chief Justice agreed with our proposed cause of action and the in-person hearings ceased Then came the realization that it was not business as usual and as the weeks rolled by it became further apparent that it could not be business as usual and would never be the same again We all know what unfolded by the onslaught of the COVID-19 pandemic on our way of life and consequently on our individual court practices and the operation of the courts and the administration of justice How did we fear with regards to ensuring that our judicial systems adhered to the principles of access to justice and to the constitutional right to have fair hearings on matters within a reasonable time by a court of competent jurisdiction Were we prepared for what was happening and what was unfolding Some of us were better prepared than others but overall we can safely say that many of our island states stepped up to the challenge and implemented systems and procedures to manage our judicial workloads Amendments to the rules of court and practice directions were implemented swiftly to allow for the sudden change in how the business of the court operated In St. Lucia, the biggest casualty was the criminal justice system especially with the vexing issue of jury trials The debates on how to tackle trials within limited spaces social distancing sanitizing spaces were insurmountable the reluctance of lawyers judges, litigants, court staff to the risk of exposure of the virus were real and whilst this was happening the prisoners on remand suffered because their cases were not being heard Lockdowns of the in-person courthouses went on throughout the world as it did in St. Lucia and the reopening of our country still posed to be problematic for jury trials In some countries jury trials have become a choice and in many cases now have all been abandoned discontinued In many of our island states we still have jury trials and the debates as to the abandonment of or reduction in jury numbers providing a procedure where an accused could choose whether to be tried by a judge alone judge and jury alone judge and lay persons continue to be debated In St. Lucia we quickly adjusted to having all civil matters heard virtually However, we had to get used to being able to cross-examine witnesses over computer screen without the in-person courtroom feel We have operated this way for well over two and a half years now in many ways it is no longer a new normal but rather the norm Most of us now have the necessary equipment Zoom or teams, virtual meetings platforms with the capacity to host numerous attendees breakout rooms to facilitate discussions between lawyers and clients or just lawyers or places we hang out virtually while we sometimes wait for matters to be called This is all a new language and experience If we were told in March 2020 that we could operate our courts our law offices, court filings violence, searches virtually we would not have believed But we all came up to speak quickly not because we wanted to but because we had to This is what a crisis does it forces us to examine and innovate within the shortest possible time In case you do not believe it or have not realized by what quantum leaps the practice of law and the administration of justice change what you do now know is that the practice of law and justice will never be the same again post the pandemic But the real question that remains and which has to be answered is whether any of us have really understood and appreciated the extent to which things have changed and what we have learned as we gradually emerge from the pandemic or whether some of us are eager to rush back to the way things were In other words, despite the pandemic had on all of our lives have we learned any lessons and if so have we actually articulated those lessons and implemented them into the lives into our lives as we go forward My law firm we operated an online practice law management system called CLEO The system allows for all of our client files replaced online in secure locations we manage client files allows for client communication with their files we have client portals, case management systems and a host of other features which allowed us to seamlessly relocate our laws and staff to their homes and to work from home We were already using zoom and teams and we were able to have our virtual meetings from anywhere among ourselves and with our clients Our courts in St. Lucia had recently introduced the online case filing system and so our matters were able to proceed online again in a seamless manner but not all of us were prepared However, quickly with the interaction of our Chief Justice had with all of the various jurisdictions what seemed impossible a few months before became possible then a reality and now a norm How do we go forward? How do we navigate the changing tides that we now face I do not have the answers and I do not have the potential to give them In my respectful opinion it would bode us well to set up a commission, a committee a think tank, a group of lawyers judges, lay persons court staff, technical experts to examine where we are what our experiences were during their pandemic assess the lessons learned and then suggest how we could implement the many lessons we have learned We could firstly recognize information and communication technologies and examine how best we could ensure the court user is best served The court user needs to be our priority We need to then examine our individual law practices recognize and examine how much of it has changed, ask ourselves whether we have embraced these changes and how we apply the lessons learned In my firm a big fact has been young associate retention is no longer business as usual with the lawyer coming into a firm working hard, making partner making money and then retiring Young lawyers are not as much interested in making partner, not making lots of money Their interests are more aligned to having meaningful experiences having purpose, being recognized being engaged with clients being allowed to interact with clients and having the confidence to experience as soon as possible the adrenaline rush of arguing their first case having a work life balance been able to work flexible hours as opposed to the traditional adrenaline rush they are interested in working from home or working non-traditional hours and why not The opportunities, the opportunities that stem from that attitude are almost limitless You could hire more lawyers as many as could work from home You would have to have a balanced work system as working from home full time would result in losing out on the interaction we get with in-person meetings Balances would be struck to the benefit of all the lawyers, the firm, the clients and the court user Think of the cost savings in the virtual heritage world Our judges I am sure have saved significant sums of money in not having to travel and island hop to preside on matters Lawyers save time and money not having to drive to court find parking, wait for their matters to be called to be heard Lawyers sitting in their offices could continue working and be more productive and when their matters calls simply turn on their video and mics and are now in court Judges do not have to travel to the courthouses but could preside on matters from their homes the requirements The decisions the courts are now faced with is whether to resume in-person hearings as before in all matters or whether to allow for virtual hearings of all applications that do not require the cross-examination of witnesses and given lawyers and litigants the choice of having in-person or virtual hearings for trials and creating the procedures and rules for allowing a mixed use system for these hearings In the court of appeal it would be strongly suggested that the court returns the practice of virtual hearings but given lawyers and litigants the opportunity to travel to the court and to be heard in-person The ultimate consideration is the improvement of the judicial system for the court user This includes the judges lawyers, litigants and court staff With the use of improved technological advances the efficiencies in cost and time are obvious At this moment I am attending the opening of the new law year for 2023 virtually I could be anywhere in the world In March 2020 although possible this would not have been considered we would have had to regard that various courthouses and to set up these virtual platforms which will come with some and inconvenient Now it is much easier so much more efficient and convenient There are lots of lessons learned and hopefully the learning we have derived will continue to develop and grow to redound the strengths and administration of justice which would be a benefit to all Thank you my lady, Chief Justice for giving me this opportunity and the honour to address the court for this occasion The learning we have derived will continue to develop and grow Thank you Thank you Mr. Foster for your contribution and now we move right along to the presentation on behalf of the OECS Bar Association Our next speaker has a key interest in continuing legal education and has served as the coordinator of the OECS Bar Association's annual regional law conference from 2017 to now Ms. Jean Dyer is a former president of the Angola Bar Association and has from October 2020 served as a president of the OECS Bar Association She is the second female president of the association since its formation in 1989 Regrettably Ms. Dyer is unable to be here with us today and so her address on behalf of the OECS Bar will be delivered by Ms. Yvette Wallace who is the vice president of the association Thank you my lord May it so please the court I would like to adopt the protocol which has already been so ably established and to say that on behalf of the OECS Bar Association I extend warm welcome to all of you to the opening of the new lawyer The opening of the new lawyer is an important occasion for the legal profession as it provides us with an opportunity to reflect and to look to the future As a new lawyer starts my mind turns to the enduring success of our legal system with judicial independence and the rule of law at heart The response of our judicial system to the corona virus has demonstrated something that has been so critical to its success throughout the ages its ability to change and to adopt to meet the needs of our society As mentioned in last year's address nonetheless our court led by our honorable chief justice used it as an opportunity to further modernize our judicial system looking ahead Our court should use virtual and traditional hearings as best meets the circumstances of the case The continued modernization of our system is crucial to see if guarding its ongoing success and its imperative reputation around the world for its excellence Our governments must play their part among other things in investing in its continued modernization so that we can continue the tradition of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court leading the way where other jurisdictions follow have allowed our justice system to continue working remotely and in person I want to thank all of you who across the OECS for your resilience and your shared determination to keep the weeds of justice turning I'll address briefly recruitment of judicial officers The recruitment of judicial officers is an age old issue but it came into sharp focus during last year with the search for Chief Justice While there is no doubt many factors behind the challenges in recruiting to the judiciary it is a cause for concern and requires our immediate attention Not having enough persons coming forward to be judges is in my view one of the biggest threats to the judiciary One thing is clear is that we cannot lower that is set for appointments we cannot compromise on quality it is essential that the high quality of the judiciary and our justice system in the OECS is not compromised what then is the way forward Why would an outstanding attorney hesitate to apply there is no single solution may I suggest that we need to perhaps expand four appointments by making the judiciary a more attractive option for persons who wish to apply in their late 50s or even early 60s how can we achieve this the time has perhaps come for us to consider whether the legal and wider community has changed enough to warrant the raising of the mandatory retirement age for judicial officers I have been reliably informed that the present retirement age was introduced in the 1960s when life expectancy was less than it is now people now work later into their lives having this wealth of experience and knowledge helps maintain the world class status of our courts increasing the mandatory age limit may well present a huge opportunity to attract lawyers who wish to join the judiciary much later in their career the present salary as they are while may not be likely to do that but the prospect of a pension may be alluring such a move will be in keeping with the practices in other commonwealth countries the retirement age of judges in the UK and Australia is presently set at 70 in the UK the public service and judicial offices bill will raise the retirement age of judges to 75 the change was said to have been prompted by the number of persons continuing their legal careers into their 70s doubling over the last decade and to combat recruitment issues and mounting legal backlog in Canada judges retire at 75 increasing the mandatory retirement age of judges is perhaps long overdue but in any case is not worthy of consideration the OECS bar also looked at issues of reform that's regulating lawyers throughout the uncertainties of the 2020 to 2022 years the OECS bar association has stayed the course even during the crisis we continue to advance our work plan for the period the self-regulations of lawyers has and continues to be the highest priority of the OECS bar association has stayed the course even during the crisis we continue to advance our work plan for the period the self-regulations of lawyers has and continues to be the highest priority of the OECS bar association during the last year we focused on possible reforms to the way the profession is regulated in our member states and territories in June 2020 we organized a virtual round table discussion which was chaired by Mr. Ruggles Ferguson former president of the bar OECS bar Mr. Ian Donaldson Mitchell Casey the main draft person to the OECS bar association model legal profession in the 1990s presented on the most important issue of disciplinary tribunals one of the issues that we in some member states and territories others should consider this option on the 19th of January 2023 we will hold another virtual round table discussion which will focus on guidelines for advertising an anti-modern regulatory framework for governing lawyers the panelists will be Mrs. M. Georgia Gibson Helen Casey of Jamaica who was part of the legal team which recently represented the Jamaica bar association before the pivot council in relation to its challenge of among other things the erosion of legal professional privilege by the poker regime in Jamaica and our own Ms. Merlin Barrett who is president of the Angola bar at the forefront of the OECS bar commitment to excellence is a need to ensure high quality and standards for lawyering the OECS bar association it tends to continue to drive professional excellence by continuing to hold virtual training session the time has come for us to resume holding the regional law conference in person we are endeavoring to do so during this law year despite the airlift challenges in the region whilst virtual events have a broader reach and are cheaper to organize there is little or no opportunity to catch up with friends meet new colleagues make connections and find new insights as we heard earlier a virtual hug is not the same thing as a physical hug many of us miss the camaraderie and social connection that in person conference brought in closing I once again wish to thank each and every one of you for joining us in this celebration as far as the administration of justice is concerned I renew my personal pledge and that of the OECS bar association to be on tiring in our efforts to continue to defend steadfastly the independence of the judiciary and the rule of law in the OECS my lord my ladies it only remains for me to extend to all members of the judiciary and the legal profession the OECS bar association's warm wishes and prayer for a good for good health continuing wisdom strength and the fortitude for the year ahead as we continue to navigate the changes of the tide thank you thank you miss Wallace and we ask that you extend our thanks to miss Dyer for her contribution and we wish the OECS bar association will throughout the coming year we turn now to the presentation from miss Colleen Milchant who is the president of the St. Kixson Nevis Bar Association miss Milchant miss Milchant is presently the principal of Milchant legal chambers she is admitted to practice in St. Kixson Nevis the territory of the Virgin Islands and the Angola sockets of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court she's also a military public miss Milchant obtained her bachelor of love from the University of the West Indies Cable Campus and the legal education certificate from the Norman Manly Law School in Jamaica in 2014 miss Milchant was the recipient of the UK Chevrolet Scholarship which afforded her the opportunity to complete a master of laws in energy and natural resource law from the Queen Mary University in London miss Milchant is also an associate tutor at the Norman Manly Law School and in September 2022 she was elected as president of the law council of the St. Christopher and Nevis Bar Association so to address us on behalf of the constituent bar associations of the OECS and the representative of the Federation of St. Kixson Nevis I present to you miss Colleen Milchant Your ladyship, Madam Chief Justice my lords, my ladies Honourable Justice Moyes, Master of Ceremonies allow me to adopt the protocol established let me first extend my best wishes to you Madam Chief Justice and the entire court staff and colleagues here today for the new year and beyond the bar associations across the eastern Caribbean play a critical role in the general administration of justice and rule of law throughout our member states and territories our associations also play an important supportive role to the court in general by maintaining a bridge between bench and bar so as to maintain the highest standards of practice within the legal profession over the last two years in particular we have seen a drastic change in the way in which our bar associations have had to function in order to satisfy our statutory obligations this led mostly this led most notably to an acceleration in the use of technology this has been particularly useful in our continued legal education seminars with a reliance on zoom and numerous webinar options our associations have been able to increase the frequency of sessions due to less time and costs involved in securing physical spaces our bar associations have also been able to improve on our ability to reach wider audiences we are no longer limited to our annual law conferences to share ideas and engage in discussions on topical issues but attorneys from St. Lucia and Grenada are now afforded the opportunity to attend continued legal education sessions held by the synchits bar or even the antigen bar technological improvements in our banking systems have also allowed for more seamless payment methods for bad news and other financial donations from our members though our associations were faced with restrictions on our physical ability to conduct the usual public outreach and community programs in some instances that limitation fueled an even greater outreach effort for example over the past year our association on St. Kitts and Neves managed to raise funds and obtain sponsorship for the donation of approximately five laptops, two tablets and three television sets all of which were donated to a local juvenile rehabilitation center on St. Kitts which as an association we have since Covid adopted we have also been able to donate items and much needed items to one of our nursing homes on Neves our bar associations have also been able to utilize various media houses and social media platforms to conduct panel discussions and even disseminate short informative videos on various legal areas enabling us to expand on our public education goals the increasing use and reliance of advanced technology has no doubt become our new normal however as we delve into a new year and a new law term, I believe that we must also begin to consider what our next normal would look like or rather how we may wish to shape the changing tides to ensure the highest standards of practice and conduct of our legal profession are met and maintained in my respectful opinion in consideration and preparation for our next normal I believe the time has come for our islands to strengthen the role and purpose of our associations as set out in our respective legal profession acts in consideration and preparation for our next normal Madam Chief Justice I submit that we have made sufficient technological advancements to seriously consider mandatory continued legal education training throughout the eastern Caribbean super-inquote territories and member states and mandating the payment of our bad due fees within all our territories there is no doubt that these considerations will also serve to strengthen our courts and jurisprudence as we continue to navigate the changing tides and look towards the future of this noble profession the focus of our bad association for the coming year 1 for the improvements in the frequency and quality of our continued legal education training 2 playing a more integral role in integrating newly admitted attorneys into the practice of law 3 advocating for legal reform on our cake and in adequate legislation within our territories and member states 4 increased public awareness of the work of our disciplinary committees 5 an increased public education on current and relevant legal areas and 6 improvements in our social activities as a bar gear that improve in relations and relationships with our members with these areas as our focus I believe our bad associations within the eastern Caribbean member states and territories will be best placed easily navigate the changing tides and not only thrive in what has become the new normal way of managing our affairs but we will be even better placed to prosper in whatever our next normal may look like as we strive to improve and develop the legal profession within our territories may please the madam Chief Justice and your observations as we hope that the constituent bar associations across the OECS continue to be strengthened in the coming year so we move along to the Emerald Island and that is the territory of Montserrat where we will hear from Mr. Renny Morgan who is a principal who is the principal Crown Council in the Atoni Generals Chambers of Montserrat she received a batch of laws from the University of West Indies Cable Campus and a legal education certificate from the Norman Manly Law School she also rules a Masters in Tax Law from the University of Melbourne filed to her appointment as principal Crown Council she served as senior Crown Council in the Atoni Generals Chambers and so to address us on behalf of the senior members of the Bataba and as representative for Montserrat we call on Mr. Renny Morgan Greetings in this New Year 2023 to all present I would like to extend our warm greetings to the Honourable Chief Justice Dame Janice Pereira to all the justices of the High Court their Excellencies the Heads of State of the OECS the Governors and the Honourable Attorney Generals of each territory and state present the Directors of Public Prosecutions and I would otherwise gratefully adopt the protocol that has been prior established in respect of the long list of attendees who are present we open 2023 cognizant of the changing tides of the times the war in Ukraine coupled with the continuing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic has had a ripple effect in terms of the cost of living and various other factors relevant to our lives now for those of us in Montserrat this has had several effects on the practice of law here the fact is that the tides of Montserrat still rebuilding with certain large public sector projects still ongoing such as the construction of our port repair store airports and other fundamental critical infrastructure projects the effect of the current increasing costs has meant that we have had to grapple with changes in contracts and how to negotiate shifting situations as laws were used to extracting the offer the acceptance and consideration cleanly and clinically but they cannot be segregated so easily from the surrounding context because the offer, the acceptance the consideration they all have a context and the greater context is our joint survival of those who would like the services, those who are providing services and all the runners in between who are shipping all the goods to small Caribbean island states so we have had to be creative to find business efficacy in contracts established on different circumstances to still provide a way forward to achieve our common goals and this applies to both the public and the private sector at the same time as the costs rise in the surrounding environment sole proprietors, businesses and individual clients are trying to stay afloat the people we have undertaken to serve and provide legal services to are trying to survive and some in the midst of dire situations have even more need of legal services and simultaneously less ability to afford them where they interface with each other in terms of debt collection this becomes now a life issue in the court as the whole the court addresses that and makes reasonable orders and persuades parties to come to some kind of amicable arrangement in situations where everyone is still trying to survive as it comes to legal aid Montserrat is still working out his own salvation in terms of the legal aid structure that should apply learning between meritorious and unmeritorious claims where legal aid is concerned and the role of the state is concerned because in the midst of these circumstances there are those who will monitor the situation and decide that going for legal aid is one way to accentuate their own viability in court now within this small space the Montserrat Bar Association has come to represent a small fluid states as secretary of the Bar Association I've noted that a significant number of our members are in fact residents on other islands in the OECS and are constantly traveling in the OECS and united in just the OECS the blended approach which we are using presently has become foreseeable in the future can only continue to be so as we continue to admit and include persons who are always the litigants claim on the Montserrat within this small space given recent event dinner in the members who have passed away and also by the departure of active members by other means such as for studying overseas also the changing of the guard the departure of the financial funds both in period of time in the midst of seemingly still opportunities in fact more opportunities to apply it's thought to work to provide a cohesive atmosphere for the building and maintenance of an up to date active by individual education which we as of December last year and in 2023 we will see to include those who are being called to the bar in Montserrat to enhance bar design and to elevate the standing of the bar individually and collectively within the Montserrat public we trust that with the help of God we'll be able to navigate the challenges that are before us and that boy us forward we believe that the current the tides are only here to move us forward not to sink us and that those built for the journey ahead will not only survive what thrives as they are propelled in the waters of 20 thank you Miss President we will move on at this time and perhaps ask that the full extent of your presentation could be submitted to us we will certainly make it available to everyone in the future but thank you very much we wish you and the members of the bar and the people of Montserrat a successful lawyer we move on now to the Twin Island and it might come to us to know that this is the last presentation but we move on to the Twin Island and Barbuda where we will hear from Miss Mandy Thomas who is a senior associate in the law firm of Henry and Bernards in St. John's Antigua Miss Thomas obtained a Bachelor of Law with honors from the University of the West Indies Gaville campus and a legal education certificate from Normal Mandy Law School in Jamaica she was called to the bar in Jamaica in 2014 and in Antigua and Barbuda in 2016 her legal practice covers a range of areas like criminal injury, debt collection and enforcement proceedings banking litigation mortgage claims, contentious probate matters and family proceedings outside of her practice she volunteers a time to help others and particularly children she's an active member of the Kiranis club of St. John's Antigua when she has served on the board of directors since 2019 she also lectures in law on a part-time basis at the University of the West Indies in Antigua so to address us on behalf of the junior members of the Utter Bar and as the representative of Antigua and Barbuda we welcome Miss Mandy Thomas Thank you Madame Chief Justice her leadership the Honorable Dame Janice Perera in the interest of time permits me to adopt the protocol established by the leadership in bringing greetings on behalf of all junior members of the Utter Bar of the OECS and on behalf of the Antigua and Barbuda Bar Association it is with humility and a sense of duty that I accepted the call to be counted among the distinguished speakers here today there is value in saying yes it is making the most of every opportunity and encounter stretching one's comfort zone and overcoming fears saying yes in response to changing ties is accepting the evolving nature of the world in which we exist and making the most of it Benjamin Franklin once said when you are finished changing you are finished the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court has proven itself to be a living moving entity running a marathon and is nowhere close to the finish line it is not engaged in a sprint of the fittest but a steady end of the bar over the last couple of years and the plans in place for the future the Bar Association of Antigua and Barbuda celebrates a number of changes and accomplishments which have taken place in the last year my Lords one such accomplishment is the establishment of the long awaited family division of the High Court and the passage of the Family Procedure Rules 2002 which took effect in July last year the successful establishment of the Family Court is testament to the radical change in the style and manner in which Family Matters are dealt with the retrofitting of the dedicated Family Court was evidently done with much thought for the comfort and well-being of litigants engaged in what can properly be described as sensitive and emotional battles this is one tide which has been successfully navigated by the Court and the Bar alike my Lords, may I take this opportunity to make special mention of Cecil Hill, registrar of the High Court her deputy and the supporting Court staff who continue to work tirelessly in managing the affairs of the Court including overseeing the retrofitting of Court rules to meet the demands of the high tide of technological features and devices required the Bar Association looks forward to an additional Court tool being added for the hearing of Civil Matters and that Court is currently being retrofitted to be the demands of the public the Court and its officers and members of the public and private Bar continue to navigate the hybrid nature of hearings post the COVID-19 pandemic it is a welcome change which from all indications is here to stay for now however uniformity in the application of virtual versus face-to-face hearings is desired and it is hoped that this can be addressed in the near future another noteworthy development in Antigua and Barbuda is the launch of the industrial courts website in November 2022 this has been another long awaited step in the development of the region's employment and labour laws it provides access to decided cases to practitioners and the public as large on other matters relating to the work of the Bar Association I will highlight a few activities and notable challenges yet to be successfully navigated I often ask myself is it just me or are people far busier than they once were is time moving even faster now than it did in the past are the days impact shorter or is it my imagination I can only imagine that you are not in your head in agreement that what I think is true with the speed at which it seems time is traveling now so too is information we are bombarded on every side the Antigua and Barbuda Bar Association despite the challenges facing its members individually and collectively has continued to in its effort to keep its members informed and connected on all matters pertaining to the court members of the Bar and matters of national and regional importance which are of relevance to the legal profession special mention must be made of the President, Mrs. Sherry-Sue Roberts Thomas and Secretary, Mrs. Barbara Hessey-Murton for their hard work in this regard members are the heart of every association my Lords, the caring nature of the Antigua and Barbuda Bar Association can be gleaned from its never-failing sympathetic close relatives including parents, grandparents siblings and close friends in the legal profession the Bar Association during this time has proven itself to be a caring organization rallying fraternal support for those in mourning my Lords, the improvement of membership experience remains the focus of the Bar the social and events committee the public outreach committee and the continuing legal education and ethics committee are among those in which the Bar seeks to engage its members who are richer more vibrant fraternity in the last year the Bar Association held a public walk-a-thon and beach beautification activity they tend to provide much needed awareness to the public on relevant legal issues and must-know laws and regulations a workshop on the recently passed civil registration vital statistics Act 2020 was hosted by the Bar in the latter part of 2022 providing attorneys and support staff with much needed guidance on the practical application of the legislation the Bar has other plans in place to host seminars and workshops in this year additionally, to ring in the Yuletide season, the Bar Association hosted its first social event since the COVID-19 pandemic gathered in March 2020 married tidings, no more filings were the catchphrase that Lord members like myself to leave work and merely make my way to meet and greet my colleagues these are noteworthy activities however, membership engagement when continues to be a hurdle on the road to greater success much is left to be desired in the frequency of events and membership participation in these activities my Lords, on the matter of education a high tide which we in the OECS get to navigate is the introduction of mandatory continuing legal education and professional development we accept your lordships the ever changing as it itself is seeking to keep up with the changing tides therefore, it is necessary that all practitioners in the OECS be required to engage in professional development seminars and courses to ensure the highest level of competence for each and every member of the OECS of the OECS and the ECSC the high utility of webinars over the last two years has made this accomplishment a step that is even more attainable with the legal profession acts in the various OECS jurisdiction including Antigua Garbuta now under review it is high time that mandatory CLE be considered and implemented for the future development of all members of the bar and by extension the region's jurisprudence my Lords, in closing I believe I speak for all general members of the OECS today there is much to learn I will draw again on the wise words of Benjamin Franklin who said tell me and I forget teach me and I may remember involve me and I learn in 2022 the Bar Association received 24 applications for call to the Antigua Garbuta Bar many of which were from freshly qualified and budding attorneys the Bar Association certainly has the capacity for growth simply because the bar is growing but it must capture and retain the newly called many of my junior colleagues who like myself are hardworking and who will go above and beyond to prove themselves will say the struggle is real there is just no time to be involved in the work of the association I agree with the interest of young attorneys highlighted by Mr. Peter Foster QC who spoke earlier my Lords permit me to take this opportunity to say to all junior members of the OECS strike that balance in these unpredictable times you have the opportunity to say yes yes to learning by doing yes to becoming involved yes to contributing to the development of the jurisprudence of the region and the richness of the legal fraternity there is value in saying yes I wish you all the very best for 2023 and beyond may it please the court thank you thank you thank you very much Mr. Thomas as we continue to wish the Antigone Bar Vida Bar Association and the country in general well for this new lawyer and this brings an end to the proceedings for today as we closed proceedings we say that it was a long morning but the morning was spent as we take the opportunity to thank our Honourable Chief Justice Dame Janice Pereira for the inspiring feature address that she delivered and also to extend our thanks to all those who spoke and made presentations this morning we extend special gratitude to the agencies for public information and the government information services of the member states and territories of the OECS for assisting with this broadcast I also just want to take just a short moment to extend thanks to Mr. Harris Richardson and his team for ensuring that the up-going story condition system was done in short order and in quick time in order to ensure that this special sitting could take place we wish also to extend our thanks to Officer Randy Monix who assisted with the retrofitting of our furniture to ensure it's not normal that we have as many judges in Anguilla and that was possible because of the work of Mr. Monix so we thank him for that we want to thank the Prime Minister Secretary and the Acting Prime Minister Secretary as Mr. Larry Franklin and Mr. Banker Matic for the assistance in ensuring that the special sitting this morning could take place as well as Mr. Claudius Gums the project manager we want to also extend thanks to the court staff here in Anguilla the registrar, Mr. Leonard Richardson the court administrator and all of those who ensured that today's proceedings could take place we also want to again recognize the presence and thank the Excellency the Governor of Anguilla and the Deputy Governor for your presence today so with that ladies and gentlemen the tide is certainly changing but we want in closing to recognize the exceptional work that our Chief Justice and the headquarters of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court has continued to do for 55 years well not the Chief Justice for 55 but you know what as I sat this morning and I saw the presentations from every island this is something that is unique and it does not exist anywhere else in the world we have managed an itinerant court for 55 years through changing times there's no special fees and we have challenges but there's a lot that we as a region can be proud of so I pray that we go into this year we enjoy the work that we do but put our work into ensuring that we have a productive year and years to come so I thank you all for being present and I wish you all the best the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court thank you oh yeah oh yeah oh yeah this special statement to Mark the opening of law year 2023 is adjourned by command of the court to update the things and this honorable court okay recording stopped