The Canadian Govern-ment-funded, Improved Access to Justice in the Caribbean (IMPACT Justice), in collaboration with the Guyana Bar Association, on Tuesday evening held a meeting to sensitise members of the local Bar about continuing legal professional development (CLPD).
The initiative is part of IMPACT Justice’s continued region-wide sensitization programme on mandatory continuing legal professional development.
Delivering the feature address was Michael Hylton, O.J., Q.C., chairman of the General Legal Council of Jamaica, who underscored the benefits of CLPD for legal practitioners; highlighting among them; the importance of keeping abreast with changes in the law to better represent the public they serve.
In his presentation; “Continuing Legal Professional Development: The Jamaica Model,” Hylton shared with the audience of mostly lawyers and judges, how Jamaica was able to implement the project.
The chairman said that Jamaica implemented mandatory CLPD in January of 2013, citing that; in a formal regulatory manner, it aids international best practices, it is good for lawyers, clients and for wider public perception of lawyers and bar associations.
Explaining the model in Jamaica, Hylton said that it is based on a credit-based system where each attorney is required to attain a certain number of credits each year; adding that where more than is needed for a calendar year is attained, those credits can be carried forward.
Hylton said that the means through which an attorney can accumulate credits include, formal education—encompassing reading for a Masters or other continuing programmes, teaching or writing or other legal learning or practice-based work.
He however noted that most attorneys get their credits from attending seminars and that generally, one credit is awarded per hour but that regulations allow for the council to allot multiple credits to a single piece of work, owing to its quality and depth.
He said that in Jamaica, attorneys three years or under, must acquire 16 credits per year and others; 12—though he noted that there is a continuing debate, where some have opined that it is the senior attorneys who should be required to make more credits than the junior ones.
Hilton said too that the mandatory CLPD, which works in a collaborative way with persons and organisations, helps in boosting managerial skills; noting that while some persons may be “good lawyers,” they may be “poor managers,” but that both skills are important.
He emphasized that proper managerial skills has to take into account, ethics, client-welfare and business management.
The Queen’s Counsel said that while ideally CLPD should not be mandatory, it is fashioned that way since, devoid of this requirement, persons are generally not inclined to participate. Hylton said that accreditation certificates are awarded at the end of the acquisition of the requisite credits.
He said that an attorney who takes time because of illness, studying abroad and the like, can apply for exemptions from the accreditation body for that year or any part thereof. The audience heard too that attorneys who are failing in attaining their credits receive periodic warnings to ensure compliance.
The chairman said that implementation of the project was met with criticism by some in practice for a long time, who thought that it was unjust to have such a system imposed upon them when this was not a norm. Hylton however said that in Jamaica they were eventually able to get past those criticisms and concerns.
Hilton termed the model in Jamaica a general “huge success,” but disclosed that there are those who see it as a “burden.” He acknowledged that there is room for development in several areas which the council will address, to ensure greater efficiency.
Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs; Basil Williams, said in his welcome address that the time has come for IMPACT Justice and the idea of continuing legal education which has found its way into the Proposed Revised Agreement for the Counsel of Legal Education which awaits ratification by the Legal Affairs Committee of the Attorneys General of CARICOM.
He noted that continuing legal education will be an invaluable legal aid to ensuring respect for, and application of the rule of law to attend all professional engagements of practising and non-practising attorneys in the fraternity.
He pointed out that for attorneys to properly function in their respective capacities, they must be constantly updated on and informed which will be achieved through continuing legal education. He described the initiative as a timely infusion into the local legal system.
Professor Velma Newton, Regional Project Director of IMPACT Justice noted that the project is one funded by the Canadian government to the tune of Cdn$19.2m. The professor said that IMPACT is a civil society project for the justice sector.
She had stated in a press release that, “there is always a need to learn and develop. Continuing Legal Professional Development is something IMPACT Justice feels very strongly about and we would want to see it happening on a region-wide basis.”
Currently, Jamaica and Grenada are the only CARICOM Member States to have legislation which addresses continuing legal education.
The meeting held at the Pegasus Hotel, was chaired by President of the Guyana Bar Association; attorney-at-law Christopher Ram who registered the interest of the local Bar in collaborating with IMPACT Justice to improve the legal system in Guyana.
The proceedings concluded after Chairman Hylton entertained questions from members of the audience.
Among those in attendance were—Acting Chief Justice Ian Chang, Court of Appeal Judges, Yonette Cummings and B.S Roy; Justice Duke Pollard, retired Judge of the Caribbean Court of Justice among other senior counsel and other attorneys.
IMPACT Justice is implemented from within the Caribbean Law Institute Centre, Faculty of Law, at the University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus; Barbados.
According to a document from the body, the programme is designed to address deficiencies in the justice system in CARICOM, outside of those that are directly related to the judiciary and the courts.
The document notes the purpose of the project as being to enhance access to justice for the benefit of all, including businesses in CARICOM Member states; and has as its goal; to strengthen legal frameworks and legal professionalism.
It is also aimed at improving legal services, including legal education and information and to facilitate increased knowledge and use of alternative dispute resolution mechanisms as a means of settling disputes at an early stage and without court intervention in the CARICOM region.
