The Tribune

By LAMECH JOHNSON

Tribune Staff Reporter

ljohnson@tribunemedia.net

CHIEF Justice Sir Michael Barnett this week supported the establishment of a family court in an environment outside of criminal and commercial disputes.

Speaking at the 2013 Legal Year Opening on Wednesday afternoon, the Chief Justice said he welcomed last month’s announcement by the Family Courts System Committee to find a location to facilitate the possible establishment of an 18,000 sq ft Family Court.

“I have long been an advocate that domestic matters should be determined in a regime and in a forum and environment different from that of criminal and commercial disputes,” he said. “This is consistent with what is being done in other countries, not only in our CARICOM region, but in the wider world.”

The court  is ultimately expected to help alleviate some of the stress on the Magistrate’s Court, deal with family matters in an expeditious manner, and create a relaxed environment for families attending court.

The envisioned court complex is planned to house a number of facilities, including three courtrooms for Magistrates, two courtrooms for Supreme Court judges, a registry for Family Court, and a section for resident officers of Social Services, among other things.

One of the three locations, which the committee reports as the most viable option for a family court is the Town Centre Mall because of the availability of parking space, access to public transport, access to banks, internal and external security measures in the form of a nearby (Grove) Police Station.

The Chief Justice suggested that the creation of a family court should be accompanied with modernised legislation concerning marriages, disputes and divorce, or the Matrimonial Causes Act.

“May I suggest that it is long time past that irretrievable breakdown should be the sole ground for a divorce and where such a condition exists, persons should be allowed to obtain a divorce without being obliged to, as it were, ‘wash their dirty linen in public,’” he said.

“In doing so, we would simply be bringing our matrimonial legislation in line with that of the wider world.”

While noting the necessity of a family court separate from that of criminal and commercial matters, the chief justice said it was unfortunate that work on the former Ansbacher building, which is capable of holding five additional courts for civil matters, has been halted.

“If and when they are completed, that Ansbacher building, with its present design, will be able to accommodate five additional courts capable of civil trials, the various registries of the Supreme Court as well as a section to accommodate the administrative work for the courts,” the chief justice said.