The Cabinet has approved a proposal for an increase in the number of judges in the Court of Appeal.

Once the necessary legislative changes are made, the maximum number of judges will be increased from seven to 10.

Information Minister Olivia Grange yesterday said the Cabinet has given instructions to the Chief Parliamentary Counsel for the necessary amendments to the Judicature (Appellate Jurisdiction) Act to allow for the increase in the number of judges.

Addressing case load

She said this is intended to increase the capacity of the appeal court to address its case load in a timely manner.

"This forms part of a broader strategy to achieve significant improvements in the administration of the justice system," Grange said.

The Cabinet decision comes weeks after the president of the Court of Appeal, Seymour Panton, identified a shortage of judges as one of the reasons for the delay in handing down rulings.

Panton told The Gleaner that he has set a time-frame in which judgments must be handed down, but the court has been unable to stick to the schedule because the system requires another panel of judges.

According to Panton, the Court of Appeal needed at least 10 judges to dispose of simpler appeals within three months, and have the complex appeals disposed of within six months.

Judgments were late

But he argued that some judgments were late because appeal court judges only had nights and weekends to write them.

The Appeal Court has repeatedly asked for more judges, and last October, the Government gave a signal that its request would be granted.