CCJ president supports decision of some countries to remove Privy Council as highest court

President of the Caribbean Court of Justice, CCJ, Justice Adrian Saunders, believes the decision of four CARICOM countries to replace the London-based Privy Council as their final and highest court offers the best opportunities for advancing the region's jurisprudence as a whole.

Justice Saunders said the CCJ is endeavouring to justify the decision taken by the governments of Guyana, Barbados, Belize, and Dominica to alter their Constitutions to send their appeals to the CCJ.

The CCJ, with both an Appellate and Original Jurisdiction, also acts as an international tribunal interpreting the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas that governs the 15-member regional integration movement, CARICOM.

But while most of the regional countries are signatories to the Original Jurisdiction, only Barbados, Guyana, Belize, and Dominica have signed on to the Appellate Jurisdiction. 

Justice Saunders said that anniversaries provide an ideal opportunity for retrospection, introspection, and contemplation of the future, as well as an occasion for reminiscing on the dreams and goals once cherished; the choices made in seeking to fulfill them, and the results achieved.