Four lawyers to be appointed magistrates
The Office of the President has announced that four lawyers are to be appointed magistrates following recommendations made by the Judicial Appointments Committee
27 May 2021, 11:38am
by Kurt Sansone
The Office of the President has announced that four lawyers are to be appointed magistrates in a fresh round of judicial appointees.
Lawyers Noel Bartolo, Leonard Caruana, Lara Lanfranco and Elaine Mercieca were selected by the Judicial Appointments Committee from a list of applicants.
Earlier this year, a public call for applications had been issued by the Justice Ministry and 28 applications were received by the committee.
Victims of crime will now be able to claim compensation for any losses or expenses they incurred throughout the process of seeking justice, including wages lost
Magistrates presiding over complex criminal cases face the prospect of having to sign mountains of documentary evidence by hand but this could soon change as part of an overhaul of the justice system.
Government sources said that, as part of a long-proposed reform of Malta’s justice system, the maligned requirement of magistrates having to stamp and sign every single piece of evidence submitted in court may be done away with.
“We are looking at systems used in other countries, such as the UK, to address this. What is certain is that, as we push to have more complex white collar crimes prosecuted in court, we have to facilitate this with a modern system in the courts that is realistic and not based on a system from 100 years ago,” a source privy to the reform said.
Speaker Anglu Farrugia has told parliament that he cannot force ministers to provide details about the people employed by the government on a position of trust basis.
Opposition MPs David Thake and Jason Azzopardi have been asking ministers over the past weeks to list each individual occupying a position of trust, how much they earn each year, and when their contract expires.
Position of trust positions are often seen as a way to give unjustified promotions to friends and supporters , bypassing the usual engagement rules for public service.
In a series of identical replies, Prime Minister Robert Abela and his ministers said positions of trust are given in accordance with a manual issued by the head of the civil service in 2015.