Chief Justice of Trinidad and Tobago, the Honourable Mr. Justice Ronnie Boodoosingh, has returned from Barbados following his participation in a regional workshop aimed at overhauling how criminal cases are managed across Caribbean courts.
The two-day gathering, hosted by the Chief Justice of Barbados under the European Union-funded PACE Justice Project, convened some of the region’s most senior judicial figures including Chief Justices, Chief Magistrates, Directors of Public Prosecutions, court administrators and registrars with one goal: tackling the persistent problem of criminal case backlogs that have long plagued justice systems across the region.
At the heart of the workshop was the review and approval of three model Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for Magistrates’ Courts and complex criminal matters in the High Court. These procedures, now validated by regional stakeholders, will be adapted and rolled out within participating jurisdictions in the months ahead.
For Trinidad and Tobago, that rollout is set to begin as early as July. Chief Justice Boodoosingh said implementation will involve criminal judges, Children Court judges, Masters and Magistrates, with support from the Judicial Education Institute of Trinidad and Tobago (JEITT) and the Criminal Justice Board. “The aim is to create a more structured and efficient approach to managing criminal cases,” he said.
Beyond the SOPs, the workshop placed significant emphasis on data, specifically, how better collection and use of statistics can reduce delays and improve court performance. In a concrete step toward that goal, a statistician from Jamaica is expected to visit Trinidad and Tobago next month to collaborate with the Judiciary’s Statistics Unit and offer recommendations for strengthening its reporting systems.
The PACE Justice Project, which runs until April 30, 2027, is designed to support Caribbean nations in reducing criminal case backlogs and building more effective justice systems, challenges that have long undermined public confidence in the region’s courts.
With the SOPs now approved and a clear implementation timeline in place, Trinidad and Tobago’s Judiciary appears poised to translate regional collaboration into concrete change at home.