Judiciary launches major backlog reduction exercise at Court of Appeal

Chancellor of the Judiciary (acting) Justice Roxane George has directed that the Court of Appeal of the Supreme Court of Judicature of Guyana embark on a backlog reduction exercise to clear over 2000 appeals and applications that were filed between January 1, 1996 and December 31, 2024.

In a statement from Supreme Court of Judicature, it was expressed that “the Court acknowledges the understandable concern of litigants and attorneys-at-law awaiting the determination of long-standing matters and assures all stakeholders that this exercise reflects a firm commitment to the timely, fair and transparent administration of justice.”

To facilitate this initiative, the Court of Appeal has been constituted into three panels, each assigned 70 cases, representing a total of 210 cases in the first tranche.

Each panel’s allocation comprises: 21 civil appeals, 20 criminal appeals, and 29 applications for leave to appeal and for extensions of time to appeal.

Hearings in these matters will commence with the civil appeals on February 10, 12 and 13, 2026 at 9:30hrs on each day.

The applications for leave to appeal and for extensions of time to appeal are those filed between January 1, 2021 and December 31, 2025. Court records indicate that there are no pending applications filed prior to 2021.

Additionally, it was noted that applications filed in 2026 will be assigned on a continual basis so that they can be heard in the most timely manner possible.

To ensure there is no longer a large backlog of cases, the appeal panels will also be assigned more recently filed appeals.

Meanwhile, the Court of Appeal, according to the statement, emphasised that this exercise will be court-driven, guided by robust case management principles, and that no case will be returned to the court registry without disposition.

“Therefore, all attorneys-at-law and litigants are expected to be fully prepared to assist the panels so that cases can be concluded,” the statement added.

Notices of hearing will be sent to the recorded addresses of litigants and attorneys-at-law, and will be published in the newspapers and on the court’s website under ‘Hearing Lists’ and on the official Facebook page.

Only recently, President of the Guyana Bar Association, Kamal Ramkarran, bemoaned the growing backlog of cases at the Court of Appeal, urging the necessary interventions be made to address the situation.

He had warned that the delays are not merely procedural but amount to a denial of justice, with consequences that extend well beyond individual litigants.

The appointment of additional Justices of Appeal in 2025 has since created the conditions for backlog reduction. The appointments follow recent updates to the Court of Appeal Act to increase the complement of judges sitting in that court from nine to eleven.