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The Judicial Service Commission (JSC) is recruiting 100 court clerks/interpreters to fill vacancies in the Judiciary. Applications are open until September 6, 2024. Applicants must be Ugandan nationals with a diploma in law from an accredited institution and should demonstrate digital skills.

The Judicial Service Commission (JSC) is set to recruit 100 court clerks/interpreters to fill the vacant posts in the Judiciary.

In an advert posted on JSC website, JSC permanent secretary Dr Rose Nassali Lukwago says the applications should be submitted by September 6, 2024.

Court clerks are administrative staff of the Judiciary who manage the clerical functions related to the courts.

They are also responsible for interpreting court proceedings from English to the language spoken by an accused person and vice versa in the criminal justice system.

Nassali noted that the applicants should be Ugandans holding a diploma in law from an accredited university or institution and are required to have demonstrable digital skills.

However, the advert dictates that applicants with higher academic qualifications will not be considered.

The applicants are only required to attach a duly completed Judicial Service Commission Form 2.

The documents required include a copy of the national identity card, a passport size photograph, copies of ‘O’ and ‘A’ level certificates and the diploma in law certificate and transcripts certified by the issuing institution.

The duties and responsibilities of the court clerks include registering cases, opening case files, interpreting court proceedings, maintaining and updating case files and performing any other duties as may be assigned from time to time by the supervisor.

The advert indicates that the shortlisted candidates will be required to undertake an aptitude test and that any applicant that will not be contacted by the Commission should regard his or her application unsuccessful.

The applicants have been warned against contacting the members, staff and officers of the commission and paying money relating to the recruitment process.

Effective administration of justice

In February this year, the Chief Justice Alfonse Owiny-Dollo asked the JSC to post court clerks in places whose language they can ably comprehend as a remedy to distortion of court proceedings.

“There was a time we had a clerk posted to Budaka court who did not understand any of the local languages in the area. Here the court would run to the Police station to hire a person who would interpret for the magistrate. Therefore, when the commission is recruiting administrative officers, you should look at how many courts are in the given area and which person can work in the particular courts and ensure that the judge gets exactly what the witness has said without distortion,” Owiny-Dollo said.

Owiny-Dollo observed that inaccurate interpretation of court proceedings by court clerks affects the administration of justice in the country.

He noted that if the judge does not understand the particular local language and he or she is given a clerk also not conversant with the local language, he or she is likely to receive misinterpreted reports which may affect the judgement.

Article 148A of the Constitution as amended states that notwithstanding Article 127(1)(b), the Judicial Service Commission shall be responsible for the appointment, discipline and removal of the Judiciary staff as may be prescribed by Parliament.

Following the enactment of the Administration of the Judiciary Act 2020 that established the judiciary service, JSC embarked on the validation exercise for all the administrative staff of the judiciary to not only manage the transition process of the administrative staff of the Judiciary from the mainstream public service to the judiciary service but also identify gaps.