– Judge already identified
REQUISITE rules for the first ever Family Court in Guyana are currently being finalised, and that court is expected to commence its sittings in 2012, Finance Minister Dr. Ashni Singh said when he recently presented the national budget for 2012. “This facility will allow adults and children to seek redress in family-related matters; and enable adoption, guardianship, and custody to be dealt with in an appropriate manner,” Dr Singh said.
A judge has already been identified by Chancellor of the Judiciary, Carl Singh, to preside over the Family Court.
This court was supposed to have begun sitting since May 2010, but a source recently told the Guyana Chronicle that the tribunal is not yet functional because the Chancellor still has to get a few things done.
However, the governing rules have been drafted and are shortly to be laid in the National Assembly. Drafting was done by local officials, after which the draft was sent for pronouncement by a Trinidad and Tobago expert.
A May 2010 deadline was set for the inauguration of the court, and the building to accommodate its operations was constructed in the Georgetown High Court compound.
The new, two-storey edifice has replicated the architectural style of the adjacent Courthouse and Law Library, and the establishment is to deal with issues such as divorce, division of property, and other domestic matters including adoption, guardianship and custody.
The initiative to have a Family Court established was prompted by awareness that the family unit was severely affected by societal demoralisation and that recognition has motivated the emphasis on providing an environment in which adults and children can seek justice, and related law can be dealt with in a specialised manner.
Last August, then Human Services Minister Priya Manickchand had lamented the fact that rules for the institution had been submitted to the responsible committee since November 2010, but had not yet been legislated into law.
Meanwhile, in the 2012 national budget, amounts totalling $2.1B have been budgeted for the justice sector. Over $300 million will be spent on the construction, rehabilitation, and maintenance of court facilities, including rehabilitation of the Georgetown Magistrates Courts, and completion of Magistrates Courts in Wales, Mibicuri, Lethem, and Linden.
The latter will realise the opening of a new magisterial district, permitting a range of actions, including filing of court matters and deposit and collection of child support, which currently require residents in Linden to travel to West Demerara.
Also, in 2012, mediation services will be expanded to Berbice with a new Mediation Centre to be constructed in New Amsterdam at a cost of $25M.
According to Finance Minister Dr. Ashni Singh, over $1.7 billion was spent in 2011 on the justice sector.

KEY ACHIEVEMENTS
Key achievements in 2011 include progress made towards completing the revision of the Laws of Guyana for the period leading up to 2010, and compilation of the Law Reports for the period leading up to 2007.
“These, along with several pieces of legislation enacted previously, such as the Time Limit for Judicial Decisions Act, which imposes a time limit on judges for writing up their decisions; the Evidence Act, which allows for the admissibility of audio-visual testimony; and the Alternative Dispute Resolution Act, which provides for settlement of disputes out of courts, have the potential to enable a more efficient and effective judicial process,” Dr. Singh contends.