Australian judges reappointed

National

By DAPHNE WANI
Two Australian judges of the National and Supreme courts have been reappointed for a third term.
Judge Berna Joan Collier and Judge John Alexander Logan were sworn in by Governor-General Sir Bob Dadae on Friday
The reappointment of Justice Collier and Justice Logan starts on Dec 6, 2017. They were first appointed in 2011.
Chief Justice Sir Salamo Injia said the judges specialised in civil and commercial law and had experience in the Australian Federal Court.
He said that apart from their duty as judges, Justice Collier and Justice Logan are also involved in training at Legal Training Institute.
“Justice Collier and Justice Logan are serving Federal judges of the Federal Court in Australia and their reappointment was through a memorandum of understanding signed between the Federal Court of Australia and PNG in 2011,” Justice Sir Salamo said.
“Both judges come to PNG to help out in complex civil cases in the Supreme Court, to help our judges to deal with complex civil appeals in the Supreme Court.
“The case law in the Supreme Court nowadays is predominately civil – 70 per cent civil and 30 per cent criminal cases – as a result of the growth in the economy.
“Their reappointment makes a total of seven non-citizen judges now serving the judiciary out of the 38 judges.”
Justice Collier said she was honoured because the Supreme Court of PNG was a world-class court under the leadership of the chief justice.
Justice Logan said it was important to maintain the relationship between Australia and PNG, particularly in the legal profession and training.