‘TIME COME’ FOR CCJ
Chief justice endorses regional court; concerns over low Privy Council rulings
Published:Monday | December 13, 2021 | 12:10 AMDavid Salmon/Gleaner Writer
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Amid the low number of rulings by the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC), Chief Justice Bryan Sykes has reaffirmed his commitment to ensuring that Jamaica adopt the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) as the island’s final appellate court...
Amid the low number of rulings by the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC), Chief Justice Bryan Sykes has reaffirmed his commitment to ensuring that Jamaica adopt the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) as the island’s final appellate court.
Sykes, during a Gleaner interview, insisted that the time has come for Jamaica to take its own legal affairs in hand and support the regional-based institution.
His comments coincide with vigorous national debate on the full breadth of sovereignty weeks after Barbados declared itself a republic, jettisoning the Queen as head of state. The matter has also sparked discussion on nationalist sentiments as Jamaica prepares to celebrate its 60th year of Independence in 2022.
Sykes said that when he attended a ceremony held in St Vincent with the current president of the CCJ, Justice Adrian Saunders, he had indicated his determination to make appellate status a reality.
“It is not a situation where I think the Privy Council was a bad court, but I think there comes a time in the life of every nation when you have to take full and final responsibility for all of your affairs, and the legal system is just one of them,” Sykes told The Gleaner.
“We have had political Independence for over 50 years, so why not entrust the development of our law to people within our region. So I think time has come, and it should become a reality.”
The United Kingdom-based Privy Council, which currently serves as Jamaica’s final appellate court, is a holdover from colonialism.
Sykes argued that since the CCJ’s establishment in 2005, the court has produced a substantial body of work that validates its suitability for being Jamaica’s final court of appeal.
He elaborated that the court is appropriate given that most of its justices were trained within the region at institutions such as The University of the West Indies.
Highlighting the irony that Jamaica already participates in the CCJ with the administering of matters relating to the Treaty of Chaguaramas, Sykes called for the fast-tracking of reforms for full implementation.
Currently, only four CARICOM member states – Barbados, Belize, Dominica, and Guyana – use the CCJ as their final court of appeal on civil and criminal matters.
Retired Court of Appeal Justice Hilary Phillips echoed Sykes’ sentiments, explaining that the cost of accessing justice through the Privy Council has been prohibitive for many Jamaicans. She also raised the hurdle of visa approval to the United Kingdom to potential litigants.
“You can’t call a court your final court and only one or two matters are being dealt with every year, particularly when so many matters are being dealt with in the Court of Appeal,” Justice Phillips said.
Retired president of the Court of Appeal, Justice Dennis Morrison, raised alarm at the low number of cases that are heard by the CCJ during his remarks at the Jamaican Bar Association’s (JAMBAR) Annual Bar Awards held on Sunday.
The Privy Council heard only two cases in 2018 and 2019, one case in 2020, and two cases in 2021.
It is for this reason that Morrison argued that JAMBAR should examine whether the full rights of Jamaican litigants are being adequately protected under the current arrangement.
“It is full time for the association to resume its leading advocacy role on the CCJ question,” Morrison told the gathering.
The CCJ has proven to be a contentious issue between Jamaica’s two political parties.
In 2005, the Patterson administration attempted to adopt the CCJ as Jamaica’s final appellate court by ordinary legislation. However, that bid was derailed after the court ruled that a special majority was needed to amend that aspect of the Constitution.
A subsequent attempt in 2015 was also aborted as the then Simpson Miller Government did not receive the support of one opposition member to pass the legislation.
Prime Minister Andrew Holness has maintained his position that the question of the CCJ should be answered in a referendum. To date, no attempt has been made to execute this vote.