Inaugural Address of The Honourable Mr Justice Winston Anderson on the occasion of The Swearing-in Ceremony for the installation as President of the Caribbean Court of Justice

Sunday 6 July 2025 | 2.30pm | The Ballroom, The Jewel Grande, Montego Bay Resort & Spa, Montego Bay, Jamaica

• His Excellency, The Most Honourable Sir Patrick Allen ON, GCMG, CD, K St. J, Governor General of Jamaica and Most Honourable Lady Allen
• Dr The Most Honourable Andrew Holness, ON, PC, MP, Prime Minister of Jamaica
• Other Esteemed Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community
• Ministers of Government
• Dr Carla Barnett CBE, Secretary General of the Caribbean Community 
• The Right Honourable Sir Charles Dennis Byron and the Honourable Mr Justice Adrian Saunders, former Presidents of the Caribbean Court of Justice 
• Fellow Chief Justices and Heads of Judiciaries
• President of the Court of Appeal of Jamaica 
• Attorney General of Jamaica
• Head of Foreign Service 
• Members of the Privy Council 
• Judges of the Court of Appeal
• Judges of the Supreme Court
• Permanent Secretaries 
• Chief of State Protocol
• Commissioners of the Regional Judicial and Legal Services Commission
• Officials of the Caribbean Community
• Members of Academia
• Members of the Clergy
• Members of the legal fraternity 
• Specially Invited Guests
• Members of the Media
• Colleagues, friends, family, and fellow citizens of the Caribbean

Salutations – A shorter version 

Please permit me to adopt the protocol that has been established but to specifically recognize the presence of 

• His Excellency, The Most Honourable Sir Patrick Allen, Governor General of Jamaica
• Most Honourable Lady Allen 
• Dr The Most Honourable Andrew Holness, Prime Minister of Jamaica 
• Other Esteemed Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community
• The Secretary-General, CARICOM

Good afternoon to all. 

It was just over fifteen years ago, on the 15^th of June 2010, that I was sworn in as a Judge of the Caribbean Court of Justice at King’s House, in Kingston, Jamaica. On that Tuesday morning, today’s event would not have been within reach of my most active imagination. And yet, by the providence of Almighty God, and with the support of family, friends and colleagues, I stand here with humility and preparedness to serve as the Fourth President of the Caribbean Court of Justice. 

I thank those responsible for this extraordinary honour of entrusting me with the Presidency of the CCJ: The Regional Judicial and Legal Services Commission (RJLSC) who recommended my appointment, and the Conference of Heads of Government (COHG) who accepted that recommendation. And I also thank the people of the Caribbean for their investment in and support of the CCJ as the ultimate voice of Caribbean justice.

I must begin by acknowledging  the sterling work of my predecessors in this office. They established the groundwork for the Court to grow into the institution of excellence, that is today. President Michael de la Bastide laid the foundation, leading the inaugural Bench which crafted the first procedural rules, heard the first cases, and established a high bar of judicial erudition. President Sir Dennis Byron brought the technological revolution to the Court and by dint of his personality and outreach efforts made space for the Court on the regional and international plane. And my immediate predecessor, President Adrian Saunders furthered that mission by providing excellent and outstanding leadership in both the strategic direction and judicial work of the Court. These three legal stalwarts have laid a solid foundation for this Court to grow and prosper.

This moment is not mine alone. It belongs to all those who helped shape my journey which began in the quiet of rural St. Ann, the garden parish, in the heart of Jamaica. My upbringing was modest, but rich in lessons, moulding me into the person I am today. My community was one where values such as discipline, hard work, integrity, respect, and perseverance, were taught by example. These lessons have lit the mileposts of my life from a young boy to today. 

I entered the University of the West Indies, Faculty of Law at the Mona campus in 1980, and thereby accessed a regional legal education system which had been created only 10 years earlier. My first law teachers were Dr Derrick McKoy (now Attorney General of Jamaica) and Mr Delroy Chuck (now Minister of Justice of Jamaica). After completing my Bachelors-of-Law degree at the Cave Hill Campus in Barbados, I furthered my academic and professional studies in the United Kingdom and thereafter returned to the UWI to contribute as a lecturer at the Faculty of Law, Cave Hill. It was also my great honour to serve as General Counsel to the Caribbean Community during a formative period in the life of the Community. 

My experience as a law lecturer taught me that graduates of the Faculty of Law and of any one of our 3 regional law schools are among the brightest legal minds anywhere in the world. Their presence in our Community, affirms that our most brilliant young citizens need not look beyond our shores for opportunities to excel in nation building and in the living of a good life. There is a Caribbean dream, if we dare to conceive it and pursue it.

My experience at CARICOM reinforced that inseparable from that Caribbean dream is laying claim to our sovereignty. Beginning in the 1960s we extracted our political sovereignty from the United Kingdom. Forty years later, the framers of the Agreement establishing the CCJ deliberately intended the creation of an institution worthy of our judicial sovereignty. Sound and enduring arrangements were put in place to ensure the independence of the Court including an autonomous RJLSC to appoint Judges to the Court and a Trust Fund managed by professionals to provide the resources necessary for the Court’s operations. 

My 15 years’ experience at the Court has revealed its transformative potential. This year marks the 20^th Anniversary of that glorious April morning in 2005, when the CCJ moved from the parchment of an Agreement into a living and functioning institution. In those 20 years, the Court has served the people and states of this region with its full measure of devotion. It has produced hundreds of cases to guide conduct between and within Member States. These judgments have been examined, scrutinized, praised, and critiqued. They comprise a record against which to measure the promise and performance of the Court. Most fundamentally, the decisions of the Court have begun to shape the way that we, the Caribbean people, live our lives and how we see ourselves. It has been an honour to contribute to that process. 

It has often been said but it bears repeating on this occasion, that the CCJ is an emanation of our own collective imagination as a people. It was not imposed upon us by anyone. Rather it was conceived, and established, and is maintained by the Caribbean people to serve Caribbean interests. In both its original jurisdiction, where it hears disputes touching on the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME) and in the appellate jurisdiction, where it is the final court of appeal, the CCJ stands as a pillar of independence and a symbol of our collective maturity.  It is worth noting that in its appellate jurisdiction, the Court has exerted reach and influence well beyond the five States of  Barbados, Belize, Guyana, Dominica, and St. Lucia that have accepted that jurisdiction. CCJ appellate cases are routinely cited and accorded favourable treatment by the judiciary in virtually every common law Caribbean State. 

As I assume the office of President of the Court, I do so not in isolation, but as part of a broader regional movement of national judiciaries dedicated to delivering accessible justice, ensuring respect for and advancing the rule of law, protecting and promoting human rights, and supporting sustainable development in our countries. As members of the judiciary, we share in the responsibility to make the Caribbean the place of choice to live, work, raise families, do business, and retire in peace and safety. 

It is my intention to lead the CCJ in a manner worthy of its origins and its calling. My illustrious predecessors have left impossibly large shoes for one person to fill. But the Court is blessed with a strong Bench of vibrant and experienced jurists. With the encouragement and support of my judicial colleagues, and the Management and staff of the Court, the CCJ will continue to strengthen its institutional capacity, enhance access to justice, and deepen relationships with national judiciaries, regional and international institutions, and the wider public. 

After 20 years, the Court has still not attracted full support of all eligible States for the appellate jurisdiction with five (5) out of a possible eleven (11) states joining that jurisdiction. I am hopeful that during my tenure, other States will fulfil their treaty obligations and become full members of the appellate jurisdiction. Even as we maximize the use of technology, I would like for the Court to intensify its itinerant sittings so that the people of the region can see us, interact with us, and realize that we are in fact their kith and kin, and part and parcel of the fabric of their society. 

In closing, I wish to thank all those who have taken the time to officiate at or attend this event:

• Governor General Sir Patrick Allen, 
• Prime Minister Holness and Other Esteemed Heads of Government, 
• Secretary General Barnett, fellow Heads of Judiciaries (from &&& Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Guyana, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago), 
• Community and Government Officials, 
• members of the bar, friends, and family. 

Permit me to single out my three children: Attorney-at-Law Anessa Anderson, Dr Aleisha Anderson, and Dr Anquan Anderson (all proud products of regional education). Without their love and support, this journey would not have been possible. 

I also want to publicly thank the Registrar and Chief Marshal of the CCJ, Mrs Gabrielle Figaro-Jones, and the hardworking Judges, Managers and staff of the Court for their dedication and commitment to the Court. It is a privilege to continue our work together and I look forward to what is to come. And finally, my sincere gratitude to the Government and people of Jamaica for graciously hosting this event.

Thank you all again for this singular honour. Thank you most sincerely.