Chief Justice Ronnie Boodoosingh has reiterated his preference for a return to in-person hearings in the Magistrates’ Courts, while continuing to use technology where appropriate.
Since the COVID-19 pandemic, most Magistrates’ Court proceedings have been conducted virtually, a system the Chief Justice says has not delivered the same level of efficiency as traditional courtroom hearings.
Speaking at the opening of the 2026-2027 Law Term, he made it clear that he believes the continued reliance on virtual hearings has affected the efficiency of the Magistrates’ Court system.
“Lists in the Magistrates Courts are historically heavy. It is not unusual for a court to have 50 or more cases for hearing on a given day. I am in favour of in-person hearings for the Magistrates’ Courts with the appropriate use of technology for hybrid hearings for several reasons.”
The Chief Justice said data collected by the Judiciary strongly suggests that in-person hearings result in significantly higher case completion rates than virtual proceedings.
“The data shows clearly that there is a much higher completion rate with in-person hearings. The Judiciary Statistical Reports reveal that completion rates between 2006 and 2016 ranged from a high of of 120% of filings per year to a low of 65% or so. For the last year, that is, August 2025 to July 2026, the completion rate was 44%.”
The Chief Justice also pointed to a sharp decline in the overall number of cases being disposed of since the move to predominantly virtual hearings.
“The disposal in 2016-2017 was 115,491. And in 2017-2018, it was 82,841. By way of comparison, in 2023-2024, 10,746 matters were completed. In 2024-25, 11,065 cases were completed. In 2025-2026, the figure was 15,994.”
The Chief Justice has said the Judiciary intends to gradually restore full in-person hearings across the Magistrates’ Courts by the end of 2027.