BELIZE Law and Practice Contributed by: Nigel Ebanks and Darinka Muñoz, Barrow and Williams LLP
1. General 1.1 General Characteristics of the Legal System Belize is a former British colony, previously known as British Honduras. Its legal system is based on English common law. Belize has a writ- ten constitution adopted on 21 September 1981, its date of independence from Great Britain. This constitution includes an extensive bill of rights and also establishes the judicial arm of Belize’s government and the Belize High Court. 1.2 Court System Belize’s court system follows an adversarial model. The delivery of arguments in court is con- ducted both orally and in writing. The system is mainly comprised of the following four levels, from the top down: • the Caribbean Court of Justice; • the Belize Court of Appeal; • the High Court; and • the Magistrates’ Court. The Belize court system is not organised into specialised courts by subject matter, although some specific issues such as labour disputes are handled by designated bodies like the Labour Complaints Tribunal. Instead, the courts gener- ally address a wide range of matters across civil, criminal and administrative law. The timeline from commencing proceedings to trial in the Belize High Court can vary signifi- cantly depending on several factors, including the complexity of the case, the court’s schedule and the readiness of the parties involved. How- ever, for relatively simple cases with few issues in dispute, it can take say six to eight months from the filing of the claim to the start of the trial. This timeline accounts for pre-trial steps
like case management conferences, discovery and pre-trial review. Complex cases or heavier court workloads may extend the time to trial sig- nificantly. 1.3 Court Filings and Proceedings As per the Supreme Court (Electronic Filing and Service) Rules, 2021, the High Court accepts the electronic filing of documents in civil proceed- ings. Documents are filed by digitally upload- ing them through a portal managed by the High Court. A document filed in this manner is deemed to have been filed on the date and at the time when the filing fee is received by the court office and a copy of the document bear- ing the stamp or seal of the court is transmitted to the filing party. In exceptional circumstances, an emergency application may be filed at any time but must be accompanied by a Certificate of Urgency. With the exception of certain matters that are considered particularly sensitive, court proceed- ings are generally open to the public. The trial of sexual offences, matters concerning the welfare of families and those involving minors are gen- erally kept private and tried in camera. There is also a practice by which the High Court may order that the filings, record of proceedings and evidence in certain matters are sealed and kept private upon the application of a party to such actions. According to Section 186 of the Senior Courts Act, 2022, hearings that were usually held in chambers are now conducted by videoconfer- encing. Court of Appeal hearings are being held remotely, while High Court trials are generally held in person. In certain circumstances, the High Court may still give permission for witness- es to testify via video link. Magistrates’ Court matters are held in person.
146 CHAMBERS.COM
Powered by FlippingBook