Volume No. 2 Issue No. 31 - Wednesday March 19, 2008
OECS needs better way to pick a Chief Justice
 Barbados Nation Newspaper
Brian Alleyne Acting Chief Justice of the Eastern Caribbean Court of Appeal.
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A BAD political habit has developed among member governments of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) in the appointment of a chief justice of that subregion's Supreme Court. It is one that frustrates confirmation of an appointment until all nine heads of government of the OECS give their consent.
This constitutional requirement, located in the Supreme Court Act of 1967, has been successfully used as a practice over the years by some prime ministers to delay for as long as possible, and even block altogether, appointments of distinguished jurists not favoured by them.
The latest example of this policy came last week with the announced retirement of Acting Chief Justice of the OECS Supreme Court, Sir Brian Alleyne of Dominica. He has been serving in that capacity for more than three years.
The 65-year-old Sir Brian, a former attorney-general of his native Dominica and a legal luminary with 12 years' service as a judge of the high court and appeal court of the OECS, has suffered more than others in being denied confirmation as chief justice prior to his retirement that takes effect next month.
The substantive holder of that post, Sir Denis Byron, had to wait for more than two years before the government of Prime Minister of St Kitts and Nevis, Denzil Douglas, eventually consented to his appointment, after failing to win support for his own nominee. Sir Brian was not that fortunate, for the Grenada government of Prime Minister Keith Mitchell was to never concur for his confirmation as chief justice – even with all the expressions of concern in his favour, including from Bar Associations of the Eastern Caribbean.
Interestingly, even before appointed to act as chief justice, Sir Brian was among those favouring a change in the system of appointment with a model that involves the OECS Judicial and Legal Services Commission, a body that, surprisingly, is excluded from anything to do with this post.
Last week, former St Lucia Prime Minister Dr Kenny Anthony, a former senior law lecturer of the University of the West Indies and legal counsel at the CARICOM Secretariat, said it was high time to end the culture of appointment of the OECS chief justice so that none of the nine heads of government could "hold such an appointment to ransom".
The Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ), he feels, may have an alternative formula to offer in its appointment of president of that institution of the Caribbean Community. The search, interviews of applicants, approval of a short list of potential appointees are all done by the Regional Judicial and Legal Services Commission which then submits its recommendations for appointment to the CARICOM heads of government. Time, therefore, seems overdue for required constitutional amendments to consider the CCJ model or any more suitable formula than the prevailing system.
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