Letter of the Day | ‘Privy Council here to serve Jamaicans’

THE EDITOR, Madam:

I write regarding a recent editorial in your newspaper, dated October 23, titled ‘Loitering at the Privy Council’, which raises questions about Jamaica using the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC) as your final court of appeal.

Let me start by saying that I, and the other judges on the JCPC, regard it is an honour to serve the people of Jamaica as your highest court. This is a major responsibility and one that the court takes very seriously. The decision on whether to retain the JCPC is entirely one for the Jamaican Government and people. We will continue to consider it a privilege to serve as the final court of appeal, unless and until Jamaica decides otherwise.

Your editorial also mentions the difficulty and expense of having to travel to London for hearings. I would like to convey to your readers that the court is not as remote or inaccessible as they may have imagined. For example, we offer hearings online, so that lawyers can address us from their offices in Jamaica, without having to incur the time and expense involved in travelling to London. So there is no reason for the costs involved in travelling to the UK to be a barrier to justice. Further, the hearings that we hold in London are all streamed live on the Internet, and can also be watched on catch-up. We are possibly the easiest court in the world to watch in action. We are only a few clicks away on a computer or a mobile phone. Our aim is to make access to the JCPC as easy as possible, for all the people who bring cases to it.

I must challenge the suggestion in your editorial that we consider that cases from outside the UK take up too much of our time. This could not be further from the truth. The volume of cases, and the place of their origin, are never a consideration when we decide which cases raise an arguable point of law and should be heard by the court. In the year 2022-23, we heard 62 cases in the JCPC across the year,, compared to 50 UK Supreme Court cases. Eight of those JCPC cases were from Jamaica. Some of the most important cases for the development of the common law around the world are decided by the Privy Council on appeal and reflect the excellent work done by the judiciary in the countries themselves. We will continue to hear all appropriate cases that people wish to bring to us. You can read more about the JCPC at www.jcpc.uk.

I wish to reassure your readers that the JCPC is here to serve Jamaicans and the residents of the other nations who choose to use it. I consider it a privilege to do so.

LORD REED

President

Judicial Committee of the

Privy Council