Judiciary Reform: Northern Ireland Good Friday Agreement

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Judiciary Reform: Northern Ireland Good Friday Agreement

Implementations

Judiciary Reform – 1998

As provided for in the Good Friday Agreement and the Terms of Reference in Annex B, the review group, comprised of four civil servants representing the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, the Lord Chancellor, the Attorney General, and five independent assessors, was formed. The review group had its first meeting on 1 July 1998 and published a consultation paper on 27 August 1998, distributing copies of this paper to political parties, individual politicians, churches, the judiciary, and a range of voluntary and community organizations with an interest in this issue. The group reviewed the criminal justice system over the past 30 years in Northern Ireland, reviewed recent changes in the legislations, and visited the Republic of Ireland, Belgium, Canada, the Netherlands, Scotland, South Africa, New Zealand, and the US to examine how other jurisdictions deliver criminal justice.1

  1. “The Good Friday Agreement: Criminal Justice Review,” BBC News, May 2006, accessed January 29, 2013, http://www.bbc.co.uk/northernireland/schools/agreement/policing/criminal… “Criminal Justice System Review Report,” CAIN Web Service, March 30, 2000, accessed January 29, 2013, http://cain.ulst.ac.uk/issues/law/cjr/report30300.htm.

Judiciary Reform – 1999

The review group published a progress report in April 1999. After the progress report, the group held a series of nine seminars across Northern Ireland between May and June 1999 in which more than 3,000 individuals, groups, and organizations were invited for their feedback.

Judiciary Reform – 2000

The review group published a report on 30 March 2000. In its 447-page review of the criminal justice system in Northern Ireland, the group made 294 recommendations on issues related to human rights, prosecution, courts, the judiciary, victims and wetness, and law reform, among others. These recommendations were also related to the establishment of an independent commission to oversee the appointment of judges, the integration of restorative justice into the judicial system, and the devolution of the criminal justice system to the Northern Ireland Assembly.1

  1. “Criminal Justice System Review Report.”

Judiciary Reform – 2001

The government was slow to respond to the review group’s report. Therefore, the nationalists and the republicans called for an immediate implementation of the report. This created pressure and on 12 November 2001, the government published its implementation plan for the criminal justice review and a draft justice bill. The proposed justice draft bill, however, did not materialize between 2001 and 2008.

Judiciary Reform – 2002

No developments observed this year.

Judiciary Reform – 2003

No developments observed this year.

Judiciary Reform – 2004

No developments observed this year.

Judiciary Reform – 2005

No developments observed this year.

Judiciary Reform – 2006

No developments observed this year.

Judiciary Reform – 2007

No developments observed this year.

Almost a decade after the signing the Belfast Agreement (i.e., the Good Friday Agreement) and constant insistence from Sinn Fein on the unconditional transfer of police and judicial powers to Northern Ireland, on 4 February 2010, the hardliner Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) and Sinn Fein voted to approve a deal that paved the way for the transfer of judicial and policing powers.1 The deal would allow the Northern Ireland Judicial Appointment Commission (NIJAC) to select and appoint, or recommend for appointment, applicants for all listed judicial offices, up to and including High Court Judge.

  1. “Northern Ireland,” Keesing’s Record of World Events, 56 (March 2010): 49754.