AG issues order to bring judicial review law into force next year

Basil Williams

Under pressure to comply with a court order requiring that he operationalise the Judicial Review Act, Attorney-General (AG) Basil Williams SC has issued a commencement order to bring the legislation into force, albeit at the beginning of next year.

The Judicial Review (Commencement) Order 2018, which was made on August 15th and gazetted on August 16th and published in an Extraordinary Edition of the Official gazette yesterday, states, “I appoint the 1st day of January, 2019 as the day on which the Judicial Review Act shall come into operation.”

The move by Williams appears to be an attempt to forestall contempt of court proceedings that were initiated by attorney Anil Nandlall over his failure to bring the law into force, in keeping with the decision handed down by Chief Justice (ag) Roxane George in May.