CCJ President heads to Jamaica for symposium
[su_pullquote align=”right”]“The last decade has taught us much. We have grown from our experience and have retooled in order to equip ourselves so that the next decade will be characterised by continuous improvement. It is my expectation that the Symposium will give us a chance to critically assess the contribution of the CCJ and gather the thoughts of Jamaican jurists to bolster our plans for the next five years.” Sir Dennis Byron, President, Caribbean Court of Justice [/su_pullquote] A contingent from the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ), led by the Court’s President, the Rt. Honourable Sir Dennis Byron, heads to Jamaica this week to share the lessons learnt during the Court’s 10 years of existence.
The Weekend Law Conference will also welcome a distinguished group of presenters including the Honourable Mr Justice Patrick Robinson of the International Court of Justice. The conference is being convened by the CLPD Committee of the General Legal Council chaired by Dr. the Honourable Lloyd Barnett and takes place at the Jamaica Conference Centre in Kingston from May 24-25.
Dr. Barnett is also the Deputy Chairman of the Regional Judicial and Legal Services Commission (RJLSC). The RJLSC is charged with ensuring the proper administration of the CCJ and among its roles is appointing the Court’s judges and staff. In addition to his hosting duties, Dr. Barnett will also deliver a presentation entitled ‘Ten Years of Jurisprudence in the CCJ’.[su_box title=”The Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ)” style=”soft” box_color=”#54c0f0″]The CCJ was inaugurated on 16 April, 2005 in Trinidad and Tobago where it is headquartered. Its central role is providing legal certainty to the operations of the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME). It is structured to have two jurisdictions – an original and an appellate. In its original jurisdiction it ensures uniform interpretation and application of the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas, thereby underpinning and advancing the CARICOM Single Market and Economy. As the final court of appeal for Member States of the Caribbean Community it fosters the development of an indigenous Caribbean jurisprudence[/su_box]
The Court’s President reflected, “the journey of the CCJ has been one of which I am extremely proud. It will be good to reflect on that journey but also share with our colleagues the lessons we have learned. I am most proud of the fact that the CCJ is known for the high quality of our judicial work and it is essential that the Court serves as a shining example to judiciaries in the Caribbean. More importantly, it is the people of the Caribbean who can derive the most benefit from the court and it is their interests that we are honour-bound to protect”.
Over the past decade, the Court has determined a number of landmark cases. In 2013, for example, the case of British Caribbean Bank v AG of Belize was awarded the ‘Most Important Published Decision’ by the Global Arbitration Review. Of note, the decision given in the case of Shanique Myrie against Barbados has had Regional impact and has been hailed as a landmark decision.
Since its inauguration in 2005, 173 cases have been filed at the CCJ in its appellate jurisdiction and 148 of these matters have been resolved. Of the 21 pending cases, 11 are ones that have been filed this year and the others are in the process are being actively managed. The court is therefore working to ensure that justice is available, accurate, expeditious and timely.
Sir Dennis Byron commented; “The last decade has taught us much. We have grown from our experience and have retooled in order to equip ourselves so that the next decade will be characterised by continuous improvement. It is my expectation that the Symposium will give us a chance to critically assess the contribution of the CCJ and gather the thoughts of Jamaican jurists to bolster our plans for the next five years.”
In addition to hearing from the distinguished jurists, there will be a celebratory Banquet to mark the Court’s 10th anniversary. Attorneys attending the Weekend Law Conference will also earn continuing legal education credits. Judges, Students, legal support staff and paralegals have also been encouraged to attend. (Caribbean Court of Justice Press Release)