An “absolutely unacceptable” 1,000 court cases have been awaiting judgement for more than 18 months, with one having been deferred for final decision since 2004, the president of the Chamber of Advocates complained yesterday.

The problem is that members of the judiciary are not accountable- Chamber of Advocates president Reuben Balzan

By law, people involved in these cases can ask the Chief Justice to replace the presiding judge or magistrate – and the Chamber launched a service yesterday to help them do just that.

“This is a serious problem the judicial system in Malta is facing,” said Chamber president Reuben Balzan. “The problem is that members of the judiciary are not accountable.”

He stressed the problem lay with “a few” of the 38 judges and magistrates. While some members of the judiciary had an average of around 20 cases, others had much more, such as 270 and 340, he said.

According to law, a party to a court case which has been pending for judgement for 18 months or more may request that the Chief Justice change the presiding member of the judiciary.

The Chief Justice is also bound to draw up an annual report on cases which were transferred from one judge to another and submit it to the Commission for the Administration of Justice.

There was not much the Commission could do, Dr Balzan noted, apart from draw the judges’ attention to the complaints it might receive on the cases concerned.

People in this situation may contact the chamber on 2124 8601 between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. or send an e-mail to info@avukati.org and the chamber will file the application on their behalf.

Dr Balzan had already raised the issue during the opening ceremony of the Forensic Year a month ago. However, Chief Justice Silvio Camilleri had expressed caution about the Chamber’s new service, saying it could backfire – not only because the member of the judiciary would feel offended but also because it could cause a disruption in the flow of cases.

However, Dr Balzan said such a long wait was unacceptable and the Chamber was willing to help people overcome it by applying the article of the law.

It would then be at the discretion of the Chief Justice whether to accept the application. Judges taking on such cases would need time to study the case and possibly appoint a hearing prior to passing judgement, Dr Balzan cautioned.