SINGAPORE – A group from the State Courts is wanting into how the requirements of numerous tribunals could be raised by organising them right into a coordinated community, Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon mentioned on Tuesday (April 26).
For extraordinary folks, tribunals such because the Small Claims Tribunals and Employment Claims Tribunals are sometimes their solely level of contact with the justice system, he famous.
A unified and coherent system might improve accessibility by having standardised guidelines and will additionally unlock economies of scale in operational and administrative features, he mentioned.
Chief Justice Menon was setting out his imaginative and prescient for a coordinated and networked system of tribunals on the primary day of an inaugural convention geared toward elevating the requirements and high quality of tribunal observe.
The two-day digital convention, collectively organised by the State Courts and the Singapore Academy of Law (SAL), options worldwide and native audio system from the judiciary and tribunal communities.
Unlike a courtroom listening to, tribunal proceedings are carried out in a extra casual method with simplified, judge-led processes, mentioned a joint assertion by the State Courts and the SAL.
The events are typically not represented by attorneys.
Common disputes embrace lower-value contractual claims, neighbour conflicts over extreme noise, odor, smoke or gentle and employment claims.
Tribunals additionally play a job in figuring out issues requiring specialised data, such because the Strata Titles Boards and Land Acquisition Appeals Board comprising architects, engineers and attorneys.
In his keynote handle, Chief Justice Menon mentioned the tribunals system is an integral and indispensable a part of the justice system.
Over the previous three years, greater than 34,000 claims have been heard and handled by the three tribunals throughout the State Courts, he mentioned.
Last 12 months alone, the Small Claims Tribunals dealt with 9,804 disputes between shoppers and suppliers; the Community Disputes Resolution Tribunals handled 246 disputes between neighbours; and the Employment Claims Tribunal heard 1,192 disputes between employers and staff.
The Chief Justice mentioned the proximity of the tribunals’ features to the issues that folks encounter in day by day life meant that the standard of the tribunals system will characteristic as a major reference level for public evaluation of the standard of the justice system.
“To the woman on the street, it matters not whether her complaint is dealt with by a court, a tribunal or a review board,” mentioned Chief Justice Menon.
“What matters to her is that her grievance has been dealt with in a manner which is fair and just, and by means which are efficient and accessible.”
He mentioned the tribunals system’s capability for specialisation allows tribunals to play a job that enhances the extra generalist courtroom, however this variety additionally challenges efficiency.
Individual tribunals might lack the economies of scale {that a} single, unified system would take pleasure in, he mentioned.
This might additionally pose issues to innovation and reform, as there will not be a sufficiently robust driving power to look at the necessity for change, he mentioned.
Another problem is certainly one of accessibility.
“The prospect of navigating an uncoordinated network of tribunals might prove daunting to the uninitiated,” he mentioned.
He urged that the best system is certainly one of a “coordinated network of parts”.
In time, he mentioned, frequent terminology or a simplified set of standardised guidelines could be developed, such that tribunals retain specialist guidelines however in any other case function utilizing a broadly constant fundamental process.
Consolidation, he mentioned, might additionally facilitate the event of a scientific framework for coaching and profession improvement.
“This would contribute to the overall quality of tribunal justice and would help to ensure that our tribunals are well equipped to meet the evolving needs they exist to serve.”
