Minister of Industry, Investment and Commerce Anthony Hylton recently met with the National Competitiveness Council (NCC) Secretariat, Supreme Court chief justice, Zaila McCalla and Justice Minister Mark Golding to discuss reforms aimed at improving the efficiency of the judicial system in resolving commercial issues.

The meeting, which was held on Tuesday, July 10, at the offices of JAMPRO, also included JAMPRO president, Sancia Bennett-Templer, and Donna Parchment-Brown, CEO of the Dispute Resolution Foundation. The discussions underscored the need for speedier resolution of commercial disputes through increased human resources, improved physical infrastructure and more effective use of information technology within the court system.

complex investigation

Minister Hylton agreed with the need for the courts to adopt the General Evidence Management Systems (GEMS), which significantly enhances the capacity of courts to deal with complex investigation and litigation.

Electronic filing and easy accessibility to evidentiary material were highlighted as major advantages of the integrated case-management system which will lead to a reduction in litigation backlog.

It was noted that businesses often fail to file matters in the commercial courts, where the time taken to process claims is significantly lowered. In addition, members of the business community do not make adequate use of the Dispute Resolution Foundation's arbitration system before seeking legal recourse. The Minister emphasised the need for greater sensitisation of members of the business community and legal fraternity in light of these concerns.

Minister Hylton, in his capacity as chairman of the NCC, has been championing a comprehensive reform agenda to improve the country's business environment.

The NCC meeting took place within the context of the Government's thrust towards improving Jamaica's ranking in the World Bank-published Doing Business Report index.

importance

For his part, Minister Golding welcomed the discussions and underscored the importance of the Doing Business Report to Jamaica's ability to attract foreign investment.

The targeted action plan coming out the high-level discussions will form part of the wider NCC-reform agenda to be submitted to Cabinet for approval.

The NCC is a collaborative effort between key public and private sector entities to advance research, policy advocacy and public awareness initiatives with a view to creating an environment which is conducive to the development of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises.

Chief Justice McCalla and Ministers Hylton and Golding have all reiterated a commitment to ensuring adequate judicial and arbitration systems for commercial matters through the NCC's reform agenda.