IMPACT Justice, a Government of Canada funded project, hosted a workshop on ‘Sound Policy for Better Law’ in partnership with the Attorney General’s Chambers of Saint Lucia on July 3 – July 5, 2019 at the Bay Gardens Hotel in Rodney Bay, Saint Lucia.
The event commenced with Professor Velma Newton, Regional Project Director of the IMPACT Justice Project noting that IMPACT Justice had created a drafting instructions manual which would be of use to participants, and imploring them to share the knowledge they gain across the government service. Gillian Vidal-Jules, Director of Legislative Drafting in the Attorney General’s Chambers, urged participants to turn what they learn from this workshop into innovative approaches to their work. The Attorney General of Saint Lucia, Stephen Julien, indicated that the Cabinet of Saint Lucia recognized that there was no continuity in the training of middle and upper management in the public service of Saint Lucia, and thanked IMPACT Justice for making this workshop happen.
The workshop aimed to enhance the ability of public sector officers to provide drafting instructions to legislative drafters in an effort to ensure policy directions are carefully translated into law. The participants, which included Saint Lucian permanent secretaries, deputy permanent secretaries and other senior and middle level officers, learned best practice approaches in preparing drafting instructions from Ian Macintyre, the Chief Parliamentary Counsel of Trinidad and Tobago, Dr. Eileen Boxill, a former Director of Legal Reform in Jamaica, and Nadine Wilkins, the Deputy Director of Legal Reform in Jamaica.
IMPACT Justice is a Government of Canada funded project and is implemented through the Caribbean Law Institute Centre of the University of the West Indies Cave Hill Campus. The project’s ultimate goal is to improve access to justice in the region for vulnerable groups, inclusive of women, men, girls, and boys. This workshop was held as IMPACT Justice continues to work with regional governments to strengthen institutional capacity.