Page 755 - Week 03 - Tuesday, 20 March 2018
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diversity of the Canberra community. People with a language difficulty or a mental or physical disability will no longer be considered not to qualify to serve as jurors. Rather, they will be able to claim exemption from jury duty. Furthermore, a person must be given the appropriate level of support. That support would enable a person to properly discharge their duties as a juror if that support can reasonably be given. This can include the provision of an interpreter, including an Auslan interpreter; assistance animals; and disability aids. The provision of this type of support is consistent with decisions of the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
The amendments to the Supreme Court Act will assist the court in better managing its case load by recognising the expanded role of the associate judge. It is well known that court processes can take a long time, and any effort to reduce court waiting times is, of course, welcome. This bill clarifies that the associate judge may exercise the jurisdiction of the court that is exercisable by a single judge other than for a trial on indictment or a matter before the court of appeal.
Similar to amendments to the Juries Act, amendments to the Oaths and Affirmations Act will ensure that court processes better reflect the diversity of Canberra’s population. The bill provides that an oath can be adapted by a person taking the oath by, for example, naming a god in their religion rather than being obliged to say, “Almighty God” or “So help me, God”. This will ensure that the court process is more inclusive and better recognises Canberra’s multicultural and multi-faith community.
In conclusion, the Greens are very pleased to support this bill. We believe it will assist the courts in making their processes more efficient and also make the courts more inclusive and better reflect the diversity of the Canberra community.
MS CHEYNE (Ginninderra) (4.34): In a rapidly changing and interconnected world, with new technology, better social awareness and stronger relations between Canberra and the rest of the world, our justice system must be able to keep up. It must guarantee fair and timely outcomes, be more easily accessible and respect cultural differences and religious views.
This bill updates the legislation governing our courts so that we can better meet these standards. In addition to several changes that improve the efficiency of our court and tribunal proceedings, the bill makes a considerable effort to improve the system’s fairness, cultural sensitivity and ability to protect individuals’ human rights.
The amendments to the Evidence (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1991 are especially important. At present, the act allows ACT courts to direct a person to appear before the court via audiovisual links and audio links from another place within Australia. There is little guidance on whether ACT courtrooms are intended to do this with locations outside Australia.
The amendments in this bill confirm that ACT courts can take evidence and submissions from overseas in this way and clarify the processes for doing so. For example, it directs the court on how it should administer oaths and affirmations by audiovisual or audio links and how to deal with different international norms around giving evidence on oath or affirmation.
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