The passage of the Foreign Judgement (Reciprocal Enforcement) Amendment Bill is expected at a sitting of the National Assembly set for Thursday, July 20.
The Bill is slated for a second reading, which will be followed by robust debate by members from the opposition and government benches.
The Bill is piloted by Attorney General Anil Nandlall, SC, and seeks to revamp the 1961 Act. It should be noted that even without the support of the parliamentary opposition, the Bill can easily be passed by way of the government’s one seat majority.
And once passed, it allows for judgements or court orders from Guyana to be enforceable in some 60 countries globally.
And the Bill, as the name suggests, is based on reciprocity.
“This Bill is very significant to the commercial community. It is a Bill that will inspire investors’ confidence.
“…And it is a Bill that will put Guyana in the lead, at least in the CARICOM region… simply put, this Bill allows judgements from Guyana to be enforced in 60 jurisdictions listed in the schedule,” Nandlall said during his Tuesday night ‘Issues in the News’ Facebook broadcast.
Every major jurisdiction in the world is among the 60 listed countries where judgements from Guyana can be enforced. It includes countries in the English-Speaking Caribbean and Commonwealth and major jurisdictions in Europe, Asia, North America and Africa.
“Litigation is expensive, so if you receive judgement in Guyana, you don’t have to relitigate if the person flees to another country. You can take your judgement for enforcement in that country,” the Attorney General explained.
He said Guyana took guidance from the Commonwealth model and consulted countries like Singapore and other commercial jurisdictions.
Several other important Bills will be laid at Thursday’s sitting of the National Assembly; they include: the Data Protection Bill, the Electronic Communication and Transaction Bill, the Anti Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism Amendment Bill, the Real Estate and Brookers Bill and the National Compliance Bill.
The Single Window Bill, which was sent to a Special Select Committee, will also return to the floor of the House for further debate and passage.
All of these Bills add to efforts to modernise the legislative landscape of the country.
