Justice Frank Seepersad yesterday held the first in-person hearing in the San Fernando Supreme Court in almost two years.
In-person hearings had been on hold for almost two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Seepersad described being back in the physical courtroom as “refreshing,” but said while soon there will be no more safe zones, the Judiciary still seems to be “dragging” on returning to physical operations.
Seepersad was speaking before the trial in which WASA employee Adrian Koat sued the Attorney General for negligence, after he was injured during a collision with a fire truck five years ago.
One of the attorneys representing the State, Monica Smith, complained about her experience in entering the court.
Last week, the Judiciary sent a form via email to each person who would be in the courtroom and asked them to fill in the requested information and submit it.
At the security area at the entrance of the courtroom, a check was done to ensure the names were on a list, then temperature testing and sanitisation, followed by a body scan.
While Smith’s name was on the list, the form she pre-filled could not be found and she was asked to fill out another form.
Apologising for the inconvenience, Seepersad noted that safe zones will no longer be in effect, but it seemed as if the judicial system was dragging behind.
He also had difficulty understanding the “multi-layered administrative processes” involved “to simply allow citizens access to justice” for in-person hearings.
Hopeful that the issue raised by Smith would be addressed, he said neither counsel nor members of the public should have unpleasant experiences coming to court.
Seepersad heard evidence from five witnesses, including the claimant and three fire-fighters.
The court also saw video footage of the accident, which occurred as Koat was crossing from Farm Road onto the Priority Bus Route in St Joseph on April 12, 2017. Koat suffered injuries.
Ruling in Koat’s favour, the judge found that the fire truck “was driven without due care and attention and the driver failed to keep a proper lookout and failed to have proper regard to the Claimant’s presence on the roadway.” The court did not accept or find that Koat contributed to the collision and found that upon reaching the stop line on the road, he had a green light.
“Based on the video evidence, the court finds that it was not possible or necessary for the claimant to stop and he was duly entitled to cross the PBR. The court therefore holds that the defendant is liable in negligence.”
