In a letter to Justice Minister Ali Sabry, Saliya Pieris PC has requested to consider that those involved in the administration of justice for the COVID vaccine as early as possible. Pieris said, “Depending on the availability of stocks of vaccines, I believe that those involved in the administration of justice, including the members of the Judiciary, lawyers of both the official and unofficial Bars, court staff including support staff and prison officials should be considered for the vaccine as early as possible, when administering the vaccine to other categories of professionals at similar risk commences. “I believe this would be a notable measure to ensure the continued functioning of Courts and thus be an important step in ensuring the Rule of Law and the smooth administration of justice. I respectfully seek your intervention in this matter as the Minister in charge of the subject,” he said. He informed Minister Sabry that he has on several occasions raised concern over the prolonged closure of Courts due to the COVID-19 pandemic due to its adverse effect on the Rule of Law in the country and the timely delivery of justice. “Despite all the measures that have been adopted by the commencement of this Term, several Courts including the Court of Appeal, and the courts in Kaduwela, Ampara, Batticaloa and Trincomalee were not able to function at different periods of time due to the discovery that persons with the COVID-19 virus, including court staff and lawyers, had been in the premises. This has also resulted in members of the judiciary, court staff and lawyers being compelled to go into quarantine/isolation. With reports of the discovery of a new variant of the COVID-19 virus with higher transmissibility in Sri Lanka the occurrence of such incidents could become more frequent. “These experiences serve to highlight that all those who are involved in the administration of justice are at a relatively higher risk of being exposed to the COVID-19 virus. Equally litigants who attend courts are also at risk. Due to the nature of their professional duties some lawyers travel to different court houses and have close contact with the general public. As such there is also a greater risk of transmission of the virus. “The administration of the Covid-19 vaccine to healthcare workers, front line workers (including the Police), support staff connected to such services and groups of people who are particularly vulnerable to the virus is a welcome step in returning some sense of normalcy in the country. It is also appreciated that there is already a programme being put in place to ensure that the wider sections of the public receive the vaccine, perhaps as early as March 2021,” he said.