ATTORNEYS and staff of the Attorney General’s Chambers and the Ministry of Legal Affairs have benefitted from a two-day staff development seminar geared at understanding the new Supreme Court Civil Procedure Rules.
The training programme, held at the Aruwai Resort and facilitated by Martha Des Vignes, acting senior tutor of the Hugh Wooding Law School, Trinidad, also sought to improve efficiency in the use and application of the new Supreme Court Civil Procedure rules.

She told participants that efforts must be continually made to work towards restoring public confidence in the legal system and as such, rethinking the operation of the courts must be done. The facilitator posited that citizens ought to be placed at the centre of the system, stressing that they must be heard, respected and are thus entitled to a just result, not only theoretically, but practically.

Des Vignes said too that the rethinking process must start at longstanding beliefs about the resolution of civil cases and reminded participants that introduction of the rules will now require attorneys to be more prepared for their cases before filing.

She noted too the need to prevent the abuse of the court’s process by filing unmeritorious claims. The proper computation of time is also critical to the entire process.
Meanwhile, Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Basil Williams SC ,said the training was aimed at ensuring that the attorneys and all legal staff are familiar with the rules so as to function effectively. Williams said too that the seminar serves a form of continuous legal education and noted that Guyanese “deserve a civil legal process that can fairly and promptly resolve disputes for everyone.”

He like Des Vignes believes that there is need for the evolution of the system, while noting that “Our citizens deserve it. Our democracy depends on it. Our legal system must ensure that there is the just, speedy, and inexpensive resolution of civil cases,” said the attorney general.

The Rules and legal forms span 187 pages and contain procedures for the settlement of civil matters and to make payments both in and out of court.
The introduction of the new rules was intended to ensure that there is a reduction in the huge backlog of cases in the courts by simplifying the processes to enable the courts to deal with cases justly and speedily.

These new rules have replaced the old civil procedure rules and are designed to ensure parties are not unjustly prejudiced. As a result, these changes have brought Guyana’s Civil Procedure legislation in line with similar rules in the Caribbean.