BELIZE CITY, Mon. Feb. 1, 2021– Earlier this week the media caught up with Attorney General, Magali Marin-Young, and asked about the new Time Limit for Judicial Decisions Bill, 2021. During her annual address at the opening of the judicial year, Acting Chief Justice Michelle Arana listed a host of deficiencies inside the judiciary which have led to various bottlenecks that have slowed the delivery of judgments — in particular, the handing down of written judgments.

She called on the government to do their part to support the work of the judiciary and questioned the motives for the imposition of the new time limits.

“We do hope, pray and trust these pieces of legislation which directly impact and potentially undermine the security of tenure currently enjoyed by the Judiciary do not constitute sheer political posturing at the expense of the Judiciary, or worse, a deliberate attempt by the Legislature and Executive to erode the sacred principle of the independence of the Judiciary, by demanding the improvement of efficiency in the delivery of judgments and making judges subject to the removal of office for failure to meet these time limits without the legislature and executive fulfilling their own duties by providing the essential human resources and infrastructure necessary to enable and empower judges to be able to meet those time limits.” Acting Chief Justice Arana said during her remarks.

The Attorney General has stated that the measures are being put in place to make members of the judiciary more accountable. “This measure is not to victimize judges; it is to hold them more accountable. It is to have them uphold their constitutional duty to ensure that trials are done within a reasonable time and fairly,” Marin-Young said.