For the first time in its history, the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) held court in Antigua and Barbuda at a special sitting to honour outgoing President of the CCJ, the Right Honourable Sir Dennis Byron.
Representatives from the region came together to pay tribute and say farewell to Sir Dennis for over 3 hours yesterday, May 16, 2018.
The President, in his remarks to the gathering at the High Court in Antigua, said he was deeply touched by the presentations and his time at the CCJ, saying that “it has been a wonderful experience for me.”
Speaking to the packed courtroom, the Honourable Mr. Justice Saunders, President-Designate of the CCJ, who also presided over the proceedings, described Sir Dennis as a “great judicial reformer,” recalling that “during the eight years that he spent as Chief Justice of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (ECSC), Sir Dennis transformed that institution in such critical ways that it can never again be what it used to when he assumed the office of Chief Justice.
Echoing these sentiments, Mr. Justice Stanley Moore, retired judge from Guyana and main speaker at the sitting, hailed Sir Dennis as an innovator, noting that “the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, led by Sir Dennis, blazed a trail of innovation in this region which the other jurisdictions followed much later.”
Meanwhile, the Honourable Dame Janice Pereira, Chief Justice of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, noted that Sir Dennis “has earned the respect of his colleagues as one of the greatest jurists in the CARICOM region and beyond”.
