Chief Justice Ivor Archie and Appeal Court Justice Wendell Kangaloo on Friday returned the instruments which granted them Senior Counsel status to President George Maxwell Richards yesterday.
It followed an earlier statement from Archie in which he compared accepting silk to a “grant on honour” by the President. Two former chief justices — Satnarine Sharma and Michael de la Bastide — received the honour while sitting as judges.
“One is left to wonder whether in the case of the recent award of silk, the real objection is to the particular award, the particular judges or the particular Prime Minister,” Archie said in a statement issued before lunch on Friday.
However by 4.30 pm he and Kangaloo met with President Max Richards and in a media statement issued around 6 pm the Judiciary announced that both men had returned their instruments.
“Both the Chief Justice and Mr Justice Kangaloo remain firm in their view that no wrong was committed in their acceptance of silk from the President and that their actions are very defensible and breached no protocol which was previously adhered to," the statement read.
“However, they are deeply concerned that the heightening controversy has the potential to impact negatively on the Judiciary of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago and the relations it treasures with its stakeholders."
It added that for this reason, both Archie and Kangaloo decided to return their silk appointments “emphasising that they in no way wished to reproach his Excellency the President, nor the Executive by this decision.”
The statement further added, "Their action was also taken in the interest of preserving the integrity and dignity of the Judiciary which is one of the fundamental pillars of democratic Trinidad and Tobago and which they are committed, not only to robustly defend, but also to scrupulously uphold.”
Both men said they would ventilate their views on the issue of the granting of silk at a later date.
Attorney General Anand Ramlogan told the Guardian newspaper, “the strong criticism by senior members of the legal profession was unfortunate.”
He added that the "decision of the learned judges is one which places the Judiciary, the administration of justice and, most importantly, country before personal recognition...
"The growing chorus of strong adverse sentiment expressed had the potential to undermine and damage the judicial arm of the State. “The action of the learned judges is consistent with the dignity, humility and honour that inspired their appointment as Senior Counsel.
“Whilst it is a pity that these criticisms were not articulated before when the precedent for making such an appointment was established, it provides impetus for a long overdue review of a process that has not changed in the half a century that has elapsed since independence,” he said.
“There are many in our society who are of the view that the legal profession has not lived up to its expectation or fulfilled its social responsibility.
“Those that are in need of justice the most, seem to have the least access to it. There is a clear need for more attorneys (senior and junior) to do pro bono legal work. This could certainly be a criterion for future SC appointments,” he said.
The Law Association met Friday and passed two two resolutions: To demand that Archie and Kangaloo return their instruments of appointment and to call on the Government to appoint an independent committee to consider silk appointments in future.
Karl Kudson-Phillips, who was one of the most vocal critics of the award said he is relieved that "the proper thing has been done.”
Martin Daly, who also complained told the Guardian he would make a statement at a later time. And former Chief Justice Satnarine Sharma: “I am proud that Archie and Kangaloo did the right thing. This decision must have been taken after deep reflection to see what was happing in the country.
Read the guest commentary: A case of political amnesia by Suren Capildeo, SC
It followed an earlier statement from Archie in which he compared accepting silk to a “grant on honour” by the President. Two former chief justices — Satnarine Sharma and Michael de la Bastide — received the honour while sitting as judges.
“One is left to wonder whether in the case of the recent award of silk, the real objection is to the particular award, the particular judges or the particular Prime Minister,” Archie said in a statement issued before lunch on Friday.
However by 4.30 pm he and Kangaloo met with President Max Richards and in a media statement issued around 6 pm the Judiciary announced that both men had returned their instruments.
“Both the Chief Justice and Mr Justice Kangaloo remain firm in their view that no wrong was committed in their acceptance of silk from the President and that their actions are very defensible and breached no protocol which was previously adhered to," the statement read.
“However, they are deeply concerned that the heightening controversy has the potential to impact negatively on the Judiciary of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago and the relations it treasures with its stakeholders."
It added that for this reason, both Archie and Kangaloo decided to return their silk appointments “emphasising that they in no way wished to reproach his Excellency the President, nor the Executive by this decision.”
The statement further added, "Their action was also taken in the interest of preserving the integrity and dignity of the Judiciary which is one of the fundamental pillars of democratic Trinidad and Tobago and which they are committed, not only to robustly defend, but also to scrupulously uphold.”
Both men said they would ventilate their views on the issue of the granting of silk at a later date.
Attorney General Anand Ramlogan told the Guardian newspaper, “the strong criticism by senior members of the legal profession was unfortunate.”
He added that the "decision of the learned judges is one which places the Judiciary, the administration of justice and, most importantly, country before personal recognition...
"The growing chorus of strong adverse sentiment expressed had the potential to undermine and damage the judicial arm of the State. “The action of the learned judges is consistent with the dignity, humility and honour that inspired their appointment as Senior Counsel.
“Whilst it is a pity that these criticisms were not articulated before when the precedent for making such an appointment was established, it provides impetus for a long overdue review of a process that has not changed in the half a century that has elapsed since independence,” he said.
“There are many in our society who are of the view that the legal profession has not lived up to its expectation or fulfilled its social responsibility.
“Those that are in need of justice the most, seem to have the least access to it. There is a clear need for more attorneys (senior and junior) to do pro bono legal work. This could certainly be a criterion for future SC appointments,” he said.
The Law Association met Friday and passed two two resolutions: To demand that Archie and Kangaloo return their instruments of appointment and to call on the Government to appoint an independent committee to consider silk appointments in future.
Karl Kudson-Phillips, who was one of the most vocal critics of the award said he is relieved that "the proper thing has been done.”
Martin Daly, who also complained told the Guardian he would make a statement at a later time. And former Chief Justice Satnarine Sharma: “I am proud that Archie and Kangaloo did the right thing. This decision must have been taken after deep reflection to see what was happing in the country.
Read the guest commentary: A case of political amnesia by Suren Capildeo, SC
No comments:
Post a Comment