What was 2021 like for the State Courts?
It was another challenging year and, in popular parlance, the year of the “new normal”. Fundamental paradigm shifts which were key in allowing the wheels of justice to continue turning during the COVID-19 pandemic have become a core part of what the public expects of the Judiciary in providing access to justice. We must continue to be agile and adaptable to stay relevant and thrive.
What did the State Courts set out to do?
We embarked on three broad initiatives. Firstly, we revised our organisational structure by consolidating the criminal and civil registry functions under a discrete cluster. Secondly, greater focus was placed on both mentorship, with a structured system set up to guide new Judicial Officers (JOs), and exposure, before they begin to hear cases. Thirdly, we ramped up our training initiatives to enhance the continuing development of our officers’ skills and knowledge.
The overarching aim of these initiatives was the ever-present pursuit of dispensing quality justice in a timely manner. It was challenging to achieve this within the evolving reality of the COVID-19 situation, but we persevered.
What did the State Courts accomplish in 2021?
The crime and civil registries were consolidated under the Office of the Registrar, which now serves as the central command post managing both civil and criminal cases seamlessly. This has paved the way for a more coordinated approach to case management, as well as greater collaboration across different court clusters. The restructuring has also allowed JOs in trial courts to focus on judicial work, while junior JOs in registry functions receive greater cross-disciplinary exposure to both criminal and civil work.
Nearly 30 newly-minted JOs underwent mentoring under a structured, hands-on framework. Each mentor-mentee pair spent at least 20 to 30 hours discussing issues related to bench skills and court processes. Mentors not only gave helpful guidance to mentees on judgment writing, but also sat in their hearings to give targeted feedback on open court techniques.
In 2021, 88 training sessions were organised for State Courts officers on critical topics such as forensic analysis of evidence and judgment writing. The State Courts saw a 10% increase in the average number of attendees per training session, and a 68% increase in the average number of training hours per officer per year.
Even though 2021 proved to be busier than 2020, with a 4% increase in filings, we managed to avoid backlog and achieved an overall clearance rate of 110%. We issued more than 2,100 written judgments, including some 370 criminal judgments, 660 civil judgments, 940 tribunal judgments and 140 coroners’ findings.
Our efforts to leverage on technology have been unrelenting. As of September 2021, we had heard over 11,300 civil interlocutory matters, 80 civil trials and 30 assessments of damages via video conference, and conducted over 15,400 hearings asynchronously. Witnesses outside Singapore were permitted to testify by video conference in over 100 civil matters. Even for criminal matters, video conference hearings were extended to “plead guilty” proceedings. Our “Zoom Rooms” hosted over 800 court users in 2021.
Many of the innovations precipitated by COVID-19, such as remote hearings, have become permanent features of the justice system, hardwired by the passage of the Courts (Civil and Criminal Justice) Reform Act.
June 2021 saw the specialist Protection from Harassment Court (PHC) commence operations. The culmination of a collaboration between the State Courts and the Ministry of Law, the PHC provides a simplified, expeditious and affordable process to obtain comprehensive relief from harassment. In the second half of 2021, the filing rate for protection orders and false statement orders increased by some 300% from the pre-PHC filing rates seen in 2018 to 2020, while applications for expedited/interim relief in the same timeframe increased by some 270%. We also streamlined PHC processes so that applications for expedited/interim relief could be heard within three working days of being filed (or one working day, in cases involving violence). In appropriate cases, the PHC may refer the matter for police investigation or refer the respondent for psychiatric assessment, making for a more nuanced and targeted approach to tackling harassment. Moreover, judge-led simplified proceedings mean that cases can be concluded more quickly.
Finally, we continued to build and expand our networks through outreach efforts. We assumed the chair of the International Consortium for Court Excellence, of which we are a founding member. After launching its third edition of the International Framework for Court Excellence (IFCE), the Consortium conducted an inaugural Train-the-Trainer workshop, which was attended by all 10 ASEAN judiciaries. In the latest IFCE self-assessment, we scored at the top end of Band 4 (out of five bands).
We also supported the Hackathon for a Better World 2021, jointly organised by the Singapore Judiciary, the Ministry of Communications and Information, and DBS Bank, by fielding five teams. One of them, Team Voicehackers, clinched the “Most Life-Changing Idea Award”.
What plans do the State Courts have for the future?
The civil justice landscape has been transformed by the new Rules of Court, issued in December 2021 (in preparation for them taking effect in April 2022). We have issued a set of new Practice Directions to complement the new Rules and developed workflows for the new system of civil litigation. The Civil Courts Cluster and Court Dispute Resolution Cluster have been further reorganised to implement the judge-led process of case management.
Much work will also be done towards the operationalisation of the Judicial Service Commission, which was established in January 2022.
2022 promises to be another busy and exciting year. We remain committed to our vision as a trusted and forward-looking Judiciary, and will continue to push the frontiers of justice and build a smarter, future-ready justice system.
INTERNATIONAL WORKSHOPS FOR ASEAN JUDICIARIES
More than 50 participants from the 10 ASEAN judiciaries attended the inaugural International Framework for Court Excellence (IFCE) Train-the-Trainer Workshop on 8 and 9 April 2021.