State Courts’ processes to be simpler under new initiative

SINGAPORE — Information booklets, videos on legal processes and self-service kiosks to pay fines and court fees are among initiatives to simplify court procedures for the man in the street, announced at the State Courts’ workplan seminar yesterday.

In his keynote address, Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon pointed to providing practical help to all court users as one of the State Courts’ areas of focus this year.

For instance, court users can pay fines and fees using self-service kiosks to be set up within the State Courts, reducing the time spent waiting in line to pay over the counter.

An information booklet, titled Six Things You Should Know About Court 26, will also help family members and friends of accused persons navigate through the criminal mention process that starts in that court.

In the Coroner’s Court, iPads and still photographs will be offered for family members to use in identifying their deceased next-of-kin, as an alternative to identifying the deceased in person.

“The objective is to alleviate the stress and trauma faced by family members in this painful task,” said the Chief Justice.

Apart from these initiatives to ease court users’ experience in the legal process, the State Courts will continue to look at ways to enhance efficacy in resolving lower-value civil cases, he added.

To slash costs and time taken to resolve such cases, a new Order was added to the Rules of Court in November last year. The Order stipulates that for civil claims involving up to S$60,000, parties must file the relevant documents and pleadings upfront and try to negotiate for a resolution to settle cases early, if possible. As of the end of last month, 9,119 writs have been filed under the Order.

The State Courts is now also studying the feasibility of a more “judge-led approach” at simplified civil trials involving unrepresented defendants, said the Chief Justice.

In contrast to the adversarial approach, this new approach, which has been lauded by Members of Parliament and legal practitioners, encourages the judge to be the director of proceedings, rather than a referee between two duelling parties.

The approach has been adopted to tackle family justice and medical cases here. KELLY NG