The Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (ECSC) e-Litigation Portal is now LIVE in the Territory of the British Virgin Islands and in Saint Lucia, under the tagline “Serving you on-time and Online”.
According to a statement released by Collin Meade, local magistrate, the portal went live on Monday November 12, 2018 in the Commercial Court in the British Virgin Islands, and on Monday November 26, 2018 in the Commercial Court and Court of Appeal in Saint Lucia. The first Commercial Court matter was filed on the e-Litigation Portal in the Virgin Islands on Wednesday 14th November, 2018 at 12.57 pm. Similarly, on Wednesday 29th November, 2018 at 10.00am the first Commercial Court matter was filed and on the December 3, 2018 at 3.55pm the first Court of Appeal Matter was filed on the e-Litigation Portal in Saint Lucia.
“The launch of the ECSC e-Litigation Portal is an important milestone in the overall modernization of judicial administration in the Eastern Caribbean,” the release said. “The ECSC e-Litigation Portal is designed to serve as the platform to improve the delivery of justice to the citizens of the region and will contribute substantially to increasing the transparency and efficiency of court services. Using the e-Litigation Portal, legal practitioners in The Virgin Islands and Saint Lucia can now file and follow up with their matters in the Commercial Court (and in Saint Lucia, the Court of Appeal) without the confines of the Court Office’s opening hours and without having to wait in queue to pay the required fees. As a result, the Portal will not only significantly speed up Court processes, but will also enable our legal practitioners to effectively manage their ever-increasing workloads with greater ease and efficiency. To date over one hundred registrations for use have already taken place.
Since the e-Litigation Portal went live in the Virgin Islands and Saint Lucia, legal practitioners have already begun to reap its benefits. The Portal provides stakeholders with convenient and easy access to the web-based platform via a secure login, online document filing facilities, full access to all case documents, management of case files through e-mail and notifications, calendaring, and a hearing management module to allow for greater flexibility in the selection of hearing dates.
The Court is very excited to get the system rolled out in all the Member States and Territories and in all case types so that the stakeholders can start realizing even more the benefits that the ECSC e-Litigation Portal will provide. Stay tuned for further updates and roll outs in your Member State or Territory.
The Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (ECSC) was established in 1967 by the West Indies Associated States Supreme Court Order No. 223 of 1967. The ECSC is a superior court of record for the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS), which includes six Independent States: Antigua and Barbuda, the Commonwealth of Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines; and three British Overseas Territories: Anguilla, the Virgin Islands, and Montserrat. The Court has unlimited jurisdiction in each
Member State and Territory.
To learn more about the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court and the e-Litigation Portal please visit their website at: www.eccourts.org or call us at Tel: 758-457-3600.
