The government plans on increasing the number of members of the judiciary in the near future, Justice Minister Jonathan Attard told The Malta Independent.

In answering questions posed by this newsroom, Attard said that the government recognises that the Maltese courts have a case conclusion delay problem.

“We (the government) know that it is a challenge… there are several initiatives we have been working on and there are others which have been given immediate priority, including those to strengthen human resources in our courts” he said.

He added that the ministry is also seeking to increase the number of members of the judiciary in the near future. Additionally, Attard said that the ministry also needs to “ascertain that there is the necessary infrastructure”.

In 2021, Malta implemented judicial reforms, changing the way members of the judiciary are appointed, which came following recommendations from the Venice Commission. Members of the judiciary are appointed after a call for applications which is then scrutinised by a committee before a shortlist of names is sent to the President for approval. The way the Chief Justice is appointed has also changed, and the Chief Justice must now be appointed following a two-thirds majority vote in parliament.

There are currently 24 judges and 23 magistrates hearing cases in the courts.

The government is also working on the modernization of laws “to ascertain that the process and procedures that can in some ways be reformed, are”.

Asked about reforms being implemented, he mentioned the compilation of evidence reform, which is moving at a faster pace than other reforms.

The length of time for court cases to conclude in Malta is well known and is a topic that has been at the centre of debate for a while. For example, it was reported in May this year that 80 court cases were waiting to be tried by a jury, most of which were stalled over legal issues. Some of the trials date back 13 years.

Last May the justice minister had advocated for court case time frames to be cut down, as he said that it is a problem which has been present in the judicial system for years.

In an interview with Lovin Malta he had expressed how some delays do not make sense to those who are going through the judicial process.

“Some delays don’t make sense to the accused, the victim or society… It’s an absolute priority for us to make decisions and implement reforms so as to seriously address this reality that has been with us for a long time,” he had said.

Referring to other initiatives he said that “legislative work is ongoing on other initiatives, so that in the near future we can slowly start implement various other (reforms).”