Barbara Gayle, Staff Reporter

Some lawyers and litigants doing business at the civil division of the Corporate Area Resident Magistrate's Court have raised objection to a new rule that court documents must only be served by the court's bailiff.

The rule has been described as oppressive by some lawyers because it causes severe financial hardship for litigants.

"The rule is not only oppressive but illegal," one lawyer remarked.

A court clerk said the bailiff's fee was $1,250.

One landlord, who reported that he usually serves summonses for tenants to vacate his premises, said he now had to find money to pay the bailiff to do so.

He said the rule was not fair because he often had to evict tenants for non-payment of rent and therefore would not have the money to pay the fee.

A court official explained that the rule came into effect in August this year because there were complaints from defendants that they were not served with court documents although the documents were endorsed as being served.

"The rule is really to prevent such happenings," the court official said.

Jacqueline Samuels Brown, president of the Jamaican Bar Association, told The Gleaner yesterday that she was aware of the matter.

"I am in discussion with the resident magistrate with a view to resolving any difficulty which lawyers and litigants may be experiencing," Samuels said.

barbara.gayle@gleanerjm.com