Dukharan

Justice Mahadev Dukharan was on Wednesday sworn in as a Court of Appeal judge in a ceremony at King's House in St Andrew. Justice Frank Williams was also appointed puisne judge and Nicole Simmons, master in chambers.

The swearing-in ceremony followed Cabinet's recent approval of a proposal to increase the number of Court of Appeal judges from a maximum of seven to 10.

Governor General Sir Kenneth Hall, who swore in the judges, urged them to preserve the integrity and utility of the judiciary, making it accessible to all Jamaicans.

Case backlog

He said their appointments were intended to help to ease the case backlog which has hamstrung the judicial process for years.

"This should help to restore confidence in the ability of the system to deliver justice in a timely and cost-effective manner," Sir Kenneth said.

In his acceptance speech, Dukharan said he intended to uphold the high standards of the Court of Appeal, adding that he was confident that his newly appointed colleagues would do the same in their own roles.

"The judiciary in this country is the last bastion left largely untouched by corruption, and I do believe, if the judiciary goes, anarchy sets in," he said. "I deem the judiciary is what is keeping the country moving ahead."

New facilities

Chief Justice Zaila McCalla reiterated plans to make use, by next Monday, of the new facilities at the Jamaica Conference Centre, downtown Kingston.

"We felt that we should make these appointments at this time so as to facilitate the use of the courtrooms at the conference centre," she said.