Boosting court efficiency requires huge investment – judge

The judiciary had to be twice its present size if the administration of justice were to be more efficient, a judge said yesterday in a case that took eight years to be concluded.

Mr Justice Lawrence Quintano was reacting to lawyer Roberto Montalto who, in a submission on punishment, asked the court to take into account the fact that his client had been waiting for years to be tried for attempted murder.

Marco Vella, 43, of Birkirkara was jailed for four years after being found guilty in a trial by jury of causing grievous bodily harm to a school friend in an argument.

The judge said he agreed with the point raised by the lawyer, adding there were cases that were heard and decided expeditiously but one would have either to work in court or research the situation to realise this.

Furthermore, for there to be the desired efficiency, the number of members of the judiciary had to be doubled to ensure a good ratio between the number of adjudicators and the population as was the case on the continent, Mr Justice Quintano said. Even so, although judges and magistrates in Europe had the necessary resources at their disposal, they still complained they could not cope with the workload, he added.

For the Maltese courts to reach the level of efficiency registered by their European counterparts there would have to be a big investment in everything, from staff to office space, and the right people to carry out the job. In doing so, the justice system had to compete with other sectors of society and the infrastructure, Mr Justice Quintano noted.