A judge has given a group of two dozen police constables the ‘OK’ to sue the Commissioner of Police and the Promotion Advisory Board.
The officers are challenging a departmental order issued by the Office of the Police Commissioner on August 4, last year, and the failure of the board to sit and consider promotions every three months.
High Court Judge Eleanor Donaldson-Honeywell granted leave for the group to pursue the lawsuit after she ruled that they had raised an arguable case with a realistic prospect of success.
The officers are claiming that they had a legitimate expectation that they would be assessed on previous criteria for performance appraisals, which existed when they successfully wrote promotion examinations.
The board’s delay in performing its duties has also been cited in the suit, as the officers said this hampered their chances at promotion.
They said the board’s action mean they had to compete with a wider pool of applicants for a small number of vacancies.
The group wants the policy change to be deemed illegal, irrational, procedurally improper, and void.
They are also seeking an order directing that they are immediately considered by the board for promotion and compensation.
A case management hearing of the lawsuit is expected to take place on June 1.
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