By JADE RUSSELL

Tribune Staff Reporter

jrussell@tribunemedia.net

COURT of Appeal president Sir Michael Barnett said the judicial system should be reviewed to determine whether jury trials should be reduced or eliminated.

He and other prominent former and current judges highlighted issues with jury trials last night.

In addition to Sir Michael, Chief Justice Sir Ian Winder, former Chief Justice Sir Brian Moree, and former Justice Sir Burton Hall were panellists during an event at Baha Mar marking the Eugene Dupuch Distinguish Lecture’s 25th anniversary yesterday.

Sir Michael said: “Suppose you have a complex fraud case. A jury of seven persons of humble origins may not be able to fully grasp the complications of a fraud case involving commercial fraud, etc. I'm not sure that's the best way of adjudicating that kind of dispute.

“We do need to take a clinical view as to whether or not there are ways in which we can, in fact, reform the criminal justice system and reduce if not eliminate the number of trials by jurors and the risk involving that.”

Sir Michael said he was involved in cases where his expected ruling was the opposite of the jury’s verdict. He said sometimes he pondered how jurors arrived at the conclusion they did.

Sir Burton said it is wrong that a jury does not have to give reasons for their verdicts, noting that if a magistrate convicts someone, they must give a reason.

Sir Burton questioned how appellate bodies are to reach conclusions if jurors give no reason for their verdicts.

Sir Brian noted that in countries like Trinidad, accused people have the right to elect a trial by jury or a trial by a judge.

“As a halfway measure to test the point, that might be an option to look at as opposed to taking this step you know, in one big move,” he said. “Give the accused person an opportunity to elect and see how that works. I mean, I think it works quite well in Trinidad.”

Sir Ian noted that if jury trials were eliminated, the trial process would move much quicker and there would be no need to struggle finding people to serve.

“All these issues with jurors popping out, jurors popping in, we have difficulties in getting people to serve as jurors,” he said. “It's like pulling teeth.”