Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, the Justice Administration Statutes Amending Act will make minor amendments for four Acts that relate to the administration of justice in the Northwest Territories. The most significant of these amendments are in the aid of introducing cost efficiencies and the administration of the courts. The rest are minor corrections to the relevant acts. The Fine Options Act is amended so that a reference to a notice of fine form or fine card is replaced by a fine order, which is the new term used in amendments to the Criminal Code which came into force on September 3rd, 1996.

Provisions are added to the Judicature Act to empower judges of the Supreme Court to also act as judges of the Territorial Court and as justices of the peace. This will potentially reduce delays and the number of court circuits by allowing a Supreme Court Judge to hear matters which now can only be heard by a Territorial Court Judge or a justice of the peace. Another change of how the Chief Justice of the Court of Appeal to convene meetings of judges of that court to consider matters pertaining to the administration of justice. These meetings will be paid for by the federal government under the authority of the Judge's Act.

The Judicature Act is also amended to correct outdated references of the court which the judges of the Court of Appeal may be appointed to provide for the closure of the offices of court registries when the clerk and other officers are on mandatory unpaid leave and to clarify an existing regulation, making power permits the enactment of regulations respecting the reimbursement of expenses for interpreters and witnesses. The Jury Act is amended so that a current provision permitting the sheriff to summon a potential juror, a personnel service or by registered mail is expanded to permit a summons to be left with another member of a person's household or to be sent by any class of mail. This avoids the cost of repeated attempts to serve a person. The person so served would not be guilty of failing to obey the summons unless he or she has acknowledged the summons. Several provisions would also be amended to correct errors in the French version.

In the Justice of the Peace Act, the composition of the Justice of the Peace Review Council was changed to delete the representative of the Minister of Justice and to provide for a second representative of the public to be appointed by the Commissioner in the Executive Council. This is necessary because of the decision of the Court of Appeal in the Temela Group of cases which criticized the appointment by the Minister of members of the judicial council, which reviews complaints brought by members of the public against the Territorial Court Judges. The same logic applies to members of the review counsel which is responsible for the discipline of Justices of the Peace. Madam Chair that concludes my opening comments. Thank you.