VICTORIA, Seychelles — President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Anthony Fernando, has issued a stern warning against legal counsels who engage in ‘judge shopping’ for personal reasons. During his remarks to mark the opening of the court’s first session yesterday morning, Justice Fernando highlighted the ‘disturbing trend’ whereby legal counsels are asking for the recusal of justices on the panel, ‘not necessarily in the interest of their clients.’
‘This shows disrespect to the court as you fail to realise that we all justices have taken an oath to do right in accordance with the laws, without fear or favour, affection or ill will. Asking for recusal of a particular justice without any valid basis is an insult to the court and the other two justices of the panel.’ Justice Fernando once again reiterated his call to counsels to refrain from using mobile phones in his courtroom, and to discuss the possibility of out-of-court settlements, or the likelihood of a consent judgment, saving both the clients’ and court’s time and resources.
The Court of Appeal is considering 10 of the 11 appeals listed for hearing during this session. A civil appeal was withdrawn at roll call yesterday. The vast majority, seven, stem from civil cases, while three are from criminal cases. As of yesterday, a total of 11 appeals remained to be listed. The court intends to dispose of those appeals, comprising seven civil appeals, one miscellaneous application, one constitutional appeal and two criminal appeals during the August session. All 14 were filed this year.
