Deputy Chief Justice Calls for Practical Solutions and Data-Driven Justice at Quarterly Performance Review Retreat
The Deputy Chief Justice, Justice Moses Kazibwe Kawumi, today officially opened the two-day High Court Quarterly Performance Review Retreat for the third quarter of Financial Year 2025/2026 at Jinja Nile Resort. He called for practical, locally driven solutions to enhance judicial service delivery.
The retreat has brought together the Principal Judge, Lady Justice Jane Frances Abodo; Heads and Deputy Heads of High Court Circuits and Divisions; the Chief Registrar, HW Agnes Alum; Registrars; and Deputy Registrars. The meeting aims at reviewing court performance, assess case management practices, share experiences, and strengthen strategies for improving access to justice.
Drawing from his experience as a former Judge of the High Court who served in several circuits across the country, Justice Kazibwe said he appreciated the challenges faced by judicial officers working away from their families and support systems. He commended judicial officers and staff for their resilience and dedication to delivering justice under demanding circumstances.
He urged participants to move beyond repeatedly discussing operational challenges such as understaffing, delayed funding, inadequate witness facilitation, and logistical constraints, and instead use the retreat as an opportunity for peer learning, benchmarking successful interventions, and identifying practical solutions.
“As judicial officers, we must continuously ask ourselves how we can become more effective and improve the administration of justice despite the challenges we face,” he said.
Addressing recent legislative reforms, the Deputy Chief Justice welcomed the expansion of the civil jurisdiction of Chief Magistrates and Grade One Magistrates under the Magistrates Courts (Amendment) Act, 2026, describing it as an important step towards improving access to justice and reducing congestion in the High Court. However, he cautioned against treating the transfer of cases to subordinate courts as a mere backlog reduction exercise.
He stressed that effective migration of cases requires sound records management to prevent delays, loss of files, and unnecessary appeals, emphasizing that the objective is not simply to move files but to ensure justice is delivered efficiently, fairly, and effectively.
As Chairperson of the Case Management Committee and the Case Backlog Reduction Committee, Justice Kazibwe underscored the importance of prioritising the oldest pending cases, noting that behind every file is a human story.
He further highlighted the need for accurate and reliable data capture in the Electronic Court Case Management Information System (ECCMIS) and the Court Case Administration System (CCASS), observing that quality data is essential for decision-making, accountability, and resource allocation. He commended the Judiciary leadership and technical teams for advancing a data-driven performance management culture.
Justice Kazibwe also called for improved communication with court users, timely delivery of judgments, and stricter monitoring of adjournments, noting that avoidable delays and poor communication continue to undermine public confidence in the justice system. He urged judicial officers to adopt a more human-centred approach to justice, reminding them that every case represents individuals, families, victims, and accused persons whose lives are directly affected by court processes.
“We can build a Judiciary that is efficient, accountable, innovative and worthy of public trust. Let us focus on impact rather than statistics, justice delivery rather than activity measurement, and case management rather than simply managing files,” he said.
The Principal Judge, Lady Justice Jane Frances Abodo, congratulated the Deputy Chief Justice and the Chief Registrar on their appointments and welcomed them to their first Quarterly Performance Review Retreat in their new capacities.
She proposed reforms to future retreats, including advance submission of station reports and development of a consolidated national performance dashboard to facilitate deeper analysis of performance trends, backlog management, Alternative Dispute Resolution, ECCMIS utilisation, and innovations emerging from court stations.
Lady Justice Abodo further proposed thematic sessions, breakout discussions, and accountability reviews to monitor implementation of previous resolutions, as well as the introduction of performance recognition awards for outstanding courts.
She commended judicial officers across the 37 High Court stations for their work, noting that during the quarter, the High Court handled 103,089 cases, disposed of 13,241, and remained with 89,848 pending matters, of which 29,822 constitute backlog.
The Principal Judge cautioned against unnecessary recusals and improper handling of plea bargain sessions. She noted that these contribute to delays, and advised judicial officers to ensure proper documentation of failed mediations, particularly in stations where judges sit alone and personally conduct mediations.
She also highlighted ongoing welfare initiatives, including the Thursday Wellness Programme and the Quarterly Judges’ Fellowship, aimed at promoting well-being, collegiality and peer support among judicial officers.
The Chief Registrar, HW Agnes Alum, described the retreat as her first Quarterly Performance Review in her current role. She expressed appreciation for the opportunity to learn from the Judiciary’s leadership. She reiterated the commitment of registrars and magistrates to support Justices in delivering quality justice services.
During the discussions, participants congratulated the Deputy Chief Justice and the Chief Registrar on their appointments and welcomed the proposed shift towards more analytical and regionalised performance reviews. Concerns were also raised about disparities in caseloads across circuits, with participants suggesting the deployment of judges from less burdened stations as visiting judges to support busier Divisions.
Responding to the discussions, Justice Kazibwe welcomed the proposals and emphasized the need to adapt judicial administration to emerging operational realities, including workload imbalances and expanding court circuits. He reiterated the importance of fully utilising ECCMIS and encouraged innovative deployment of judicial officers to enhance service delivery across all court levels.
The retreat is being moderated by HW Faisal Mulalira Umar, Private Legal Secretary to the Deputy Chief Justice.
Posted 25th, June 2026
