Chief Justice Silvio Camilleri today called for more transparency in judicial appointments made by the government, and better forward planning for when members of the judiciary are set to retire and need to be replaced.

While agreeing that nomination for the judicial appointments should be made by the government, Chief Justice Camilleri said there needs to be more transparency behind the process through the scrutiny of an independent authority.

The process for filling a vacancy in the judiciary should begin two years before a judge is set to retire, he said during an address for the opening of the 2015-2016 forensic year.

The retirement of judges creates a backlog of cases which will once again need to be redistributed and reduced, creating both logistical and legal problems, he said.

He recognised that there is a genuine effort to fill vacancies which arise in the judiciary, and it is not always the fault of those who have to make the appointment, as it is not always easy to find lawyers who are willing to serve.

In cases of illness, judges cannot be substituted, which often means that their work has to be re-distributed between members of the judiciary, resulting in a sudden increase in workload which has a knock-on effect.

Chief Justice Camilleri said the volume of work in the family court is always on the increase, and there is a need for another judge to be appointed there.

He said there is a growing backlog of cases that have been pending for a long time, and there is a need for more judges to be assigned exclusively to handling this backlog.

He called it a shame that judges are made to retire before they are ready to, recommending an extension of a few year when they still have the capability and will to continue serving.

Executive should renounce right to appoint members of the judiciary - chamber president

Speaking prior to Chief Justice Silvio Camilleri's address, Chamber of Advocates President George Hyzler said the government should renounce its right to appoint members of the judiciary.

"The principle we should aim for is complete separation of powers between the executive, legislature and judiciary."

He noted that partisan interests often get in the way of the current impeachment process.

Dr Hyzler recommended a one or two year extension for retiring members of the judiciary to work through their backlog of cases.

He expressed his disagreement with the current practice of retired judges being appointed by the government to head independent inquires.

He said a judge's independence in protected by the Constitution, and this protection ends on retirement.

"If the executive really needs independent judges to head inquiries, then they should appoint sitting members of the judiciary," he said.

On the lack of space in court, Dr Hyzler noted that some sittings even take place in the corridors, leading to interruptions which undermine the judicial process.

He recommended the setting up of partitions to help circumnavigate this problem.

"I feel almost humiliated asking for such facilities, but I am doing so not for the benefit of lawyers, but for the credibility and seriousness of the judicial process.

Photos Jonathan Borg