ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT
In most common law countries such as the US, UK, New Zealand, Australia and Canada, an adversarial system of justice is used, with an emphasis on experienced lawyers. In these countries, judges are appointed.
In New Zealand, for instance, judges must have at least seven years of experience as a practising lawyer, but in practice it is usually more.
In inquisitorial systems applied by most countries under civil law, including Thailand and many European nations, the emphasis is on judicial education first, and judges start a career of civil service.
In France, however, the minimum age is 31, followed by 31 months of training.
Somlak Judkrabuanphol, a 75-year-old former judge, said the general consensus among judges is that 25 is an appropriate minimum age.
Training as an assistant judge should be increased to at least three years, up from the present one year.
Meanwhile, judges who preside over cases that are of national importance should be required to have several years of experience.
“We need to admit that new judges are still not that experienced,” said Ms Somlak, who spent 36 years as a judge before becoming a member of the National Anti-Corruption Commission.
For Ms Somlak, one of the biggest problems with the judiciary lies in ideology and she said judges should take additional training in democracy.
In cases related to the lese majeste law or acts of sedition, she said, judges now prefer to hand out tough sentences.
Article 112 of the Criminal Code, also known as the lese majeste law, has been toughened under the junta, which uses a military court instead of a civilian one while ruling on criminal charges that carry maximum jail terms of 15 years for each count.
“When I was a judge, I remember the year when His Majesty the King said he was troubled by the lese majeste accusations,” said Ms Somlak.
She also said she does not agree with the idea that a successful coup justifies the legality of the coup-leader’s orders. Since taking over, the NCPO has made full use of martial law to issue orders, prosecute opponents and ban political activity.
“Not everything they order is right. If they do something wrong, then it’s wrong,” she said.
Sometimes, you could end up completing three cases in a morning THIDAPORN KORNCHOODEJ LEGAL ADVISER