The Law Association has appointed a committee to produce proposals for a new system for the State’s hiring of private legal practitioners.
In a press release yesterday, the association’s president, Reginald Armour, SC, explained that the organisation took the decision after it commenced talks on the controversial issue in July.
It comes days after Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi in his budget presentation raised questions of the Government’s spending on legal fees over the past five years, which allegedly totaled almost $1 billion for the Government ministries and other State agencies.
The committee will be chaired by Armour and will receive advice from former Chief Justice and Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) president Michael de la Bastide.
While Armour acknowledged that private attorneys needed to be retained in cases where their expertise was required, he noted that the committee would consider if additional training of State attorneys may reduce the need.
“At the same time, there must be a commitment to capacity building, including training, proper terms and conditions and remuneration for those in-house State attorneys. This includes avenues for exposure of State attorneys to career enhancement and growth,” Armour said.
He also said the committee would seek to discuss new methods to ensure that the State received value for money from its employment of private practitioners.
“Applicable and appropriate principles of transparency, fairness, value for money and accountability must be built into an objective selection process so as to be auditable and reviewable,” Armour said.
The findings and advice of the committee are expected to be presented to the association’s membership for approval before further consultations with the Judiciary and Attorney General.