SINGAPORE: More people are turning to Singapore's highest court over the years, with 50 per cent more Court of Appeal cases being heard now compared with 2013.
Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon revealed this in his speech at the Opening of the Legal Year 2019 on Monday (Jan 7), which marks the start of the year for the law industry.
Advertisement"Additionally, we have seen cases of increasing complexity, as reflected in some of the judgments that have been handed down," he said.
To cope with the rise in the number of cases, Justice Woo Bih Li will be joining Justices Belinda Ang and Quentin Loh in the Apex Court.
Additionally, the number of sitting days for the Court of Appeal has been increased this year.
"Beyond this, we will also examine possible structural adjustments to help address the growing appellate caseload," said Chief Justice Menon.
AdvertisementAdvertisement[h=3]READ: Apex court issues new sentencing guidelines for rape[/h][h=3]READ: Crimes against vulnerable people: Apex court asks for power to raise penalties[/h]He also spoke at length about transformation and innovation within the judiciary. One of the first major initiatives - an online dispute resolution platform for motor accident claims - will be launched in phases from the end of the year.
"The aim is to enable members of the public to resolve motor accident disputes online, very likely at lower cost," said the Chief Justice.
Turning to legal education reform, Chief Justice Menon said successful lawyering today "requires far more than just knowledge of the law".
"It demands competencies commonly associated with other disciplines, ranging from business and finance to project management and information technology," he said. "Consequently, law schools may need to do more than educate students in the law."
This education of the future generation of lawyers is a complex and dynamic question that cannot be answered by law schools alone, he said.
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