Dominica set to become full member of Caribbean Court of Justice

Dominica will become the fourth Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country to become a full member of the Trinidad & Tobago-based Caribbean Court of Justice early next month, Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit has said.

Dominica will join Barbados, Guyana and Belize in being members of both the Original and Appellate Jurisdictions of the Caribbean Court of Justice that was established in 2001 to replace the London-based Privy Council as the region’s final court.

The Caribbean Court of Justice also acts as an international tribunal interpreting the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas that governs the 15-member regional integration movement.

Last year, Dominica received the formal go-ahead from Britain to delink from the Privy Council and join the Caribbean Court of Justice and Skerrit, speaking on the state-owned DBS radio said that the island-nation’s acceptance of the Caribbean Court of Justice would become a reality by early February.

“Last year we made the amendment to the Constitution to allow Dominica to recognize the Caribbean Court of Justice as its final court. I can say that by very early next month, the court will come into full effect,” Skerrit said, adding that there were some administrative matters that had to be dealt with.

“But I expect the court to come into full effect for Dominica by early February 2015. Certainly as we indicated last year this is an historic opportunity for Dominica. It would mean allowing more ordinary citizens to have greater access to the judicial system,” he said.

“I am very pleased to announce that, come February the court will take full effect in Dominica,” he added. -(CMC)