Archie goes on vacation again

CHIEF Justice Ivor Archie is going on vacation again.

According to an internal email sent by Archie’s administrative secretary Shabiki Cazabon to judges yesterday, Archie will “continue his vacation leave which was shortened due to the unfortunate passing of his mother.”

Archie, who returned from his six-week vacation on May 1, cut short his annual leave by nine days. He was expected to return on May 10. In Cazabon’s email, she also advised judges that Archie will be out of the jurisdiction to continue his vacation leave.

His continued leave began on Saturday and will come to an end on June 30.

During Archie’s absence, Justice of Appeal Allan Mendonca will act as chief justice from May 19 to June 7 and from June 18 to June 29. Justice of Appeal Alice Yorke-Soo Hon will act as chief justice from June 8 to June 17.

Judicial sources have again questioned the accrual of leave, even if the Chief Justice gets back the days he lost because of his early return to the job. They reminded that there were no legislative provisions for accruing vacation leave.

Under the Judges Salaries and Pensions Act, judges are entitled to the “long vacation” period from August 1 to September, as well as Easter and Christmas. It is six weeks for a Justice of Appeal, and four weeks for a puisne judge, with six weeks in alternate years.

Regulation 2 of the act, however, makes it clear that vacation provided for “shall be taken at such time or times as may be approved by the Chief Justice and shall not be accumulated from one year to another.”

Sources within the Judiciary said Archie, like other judges, only has the six weeks during the long vacation, the few days in Easter and Christmas.

“There is no other vacation leave.”

Archie, like all judges, would have also had to receive the permission of the President to travel out of the jurisdiction, even on vacation leave.

Contacted yesterday, Cheryl Lala, communications advisor to President Paula-Mae Weekes, said Archie’s absence from the jurisdiction was approved by Weekes, however, “as far as his leave is concerned” that was previously approved by former president Anthony Carmona.

This, however, is also being questioned.

“The president cannot grant the Chief Justice an entitlement which does not exist.”

They explained that for her to grant him approval to be out of the country, she would have had to be assured of the purpose and that he was entitled to it.

“The President cannot hide behind a decision made by her predecessor. She has to address her mind to what basis the request to be out of the jurisdiction was made and whether the leave previously granted was proper.

“In short, the Chief Justice has already taken five weeks, at best he has only one week left. Where is this additional six weeks coming from?”

Archie, in March, first decided not to go on a controversial six-month sabbatical.

Instead, he chose accrued vacation leave of 35 weeks to “rest, reflect and study” in the United States, where he took up a judicial fellowship.

He then decided not to go on the 35 weeks after questions on his entitlement to it were raised and instead went on six weeks’ vacation on March 20. The six weeks were his leave entitlement at the time.

In November, Archie told Carmona he planned to go on a sabbatical to “rest, reflect and study,” on a judicial fellowship in Washington, DC. He was expected to leave in February, but his plans were thwarted when the government took the position that Archie was not entitled to any sabbatical leave under the SRC’s 98th Report.

The issue of sabbatical leave for judges is engaging the attention of the court, and an interpretation summons filed by the State is expected to come up for hearing in June.

Having left the country on Saturday, Archie will not be present today when the Court of Appeal rules on the Law Association’s appeal of a judge’s decision to shut down its investigation into allegations of misconduct against him

The ruling was initially expected to be handed down by Justices Allan Mendonca, Peter Jamadar and Nolan Bereaux on May 8, but was pushed back because one of them was ill.