High Court orders Govt to operationalise Judicial Review Act

An order has been granted compelling, among other things, the Government to bring into operation the Judicial Review Act, long seen as an oversight on the Administration’s part.
It is understood that Chief Justice Roxane George granted an Order Nisi of Mandamus on Friday. The order compels Attorney General (AG) and Legal Affairs Minister Basil Williams to issue a ministerial order that will operationalise the Judicial Review Act, Chapter 3:06.
The AG was further ordered to show cause why this Order Nisi of Mandamus should not be made absolute. The matter has been adjourned to January 29, 2018.
The action was filed by former Attorney General Anil Nandlall, who as the Applicant, was represented by Manoj Narayan and Rajendra Jaigobin, Attorneys-at-law.
The Judicial Review Act serves a vital purpose, being intended to provide an avenue for relief if litigants question a decision.
When it was first passed, then Attorney General Charles Ramson, SC, had referred to the bill as a groundbreaking piece of legislation.
“We have chosen to bring the judicial process into the 21st century,” he had said, adding that there are reasons why the legislation needed to be placed on the statute books.
He had said that the purpose of the Judicial Review Act is to ensure that the law is observed.
Ramson said the court itself, because it is supposed to be independent of the Executive, needs to pay attention to the exercise of power.
He said too that what the bill is attempting to do, as expressed in the Explanatory Memorandum, is to provide for the application to the High Court for relief by way of the review.
Despite being supported by the two main Opposition parties – the Alliance For Change and the People’s National Congress – that enthusiasm seemed to almost wane.
For some time, there had been criticisms that there was a deliberate delay.