Guyana’s Dr. Justice Arif Bulkan has been appointed to the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) by the Regional Judicial and Legal Services Commission (RJLSC), filling the vacancy created following the elevation of Justice Winston Anderson to the presidency of the Court on July 4, 2025. Bulkan is expected to be sworn in this October, becoming the third Guyanese national to serve on the CCJ Bench.
Justice Bulkan brings with him a distinguished career that spans more than three decades in law, academia, and human rights advocacy. He was admitted to the Guyana Bar in 1990 and began his career in the Chambers of the Director of Public Prosecutions, where he rose to Assistant DPP before entering private practice in 1997. In January 2018, then President David Granger appointed him as an acting Justice of Appeal in Guyana. Since May 2022, he has been serving as a Judge of the Court of Appeal in Belize.
His legal scholarship is equally noteworthy. Between 2008 and 2022, Bulkan lectured at the University of the West Indies Faculty of Law, specialising in public law, constitutional law, and human rights. He has authored and co-authored seminal works, including The Survival of Indigenous Rights in Guyana (2012) and Fundamentals of Caribbean Constitutional Law (2015, 2021). His research and publications have been pivotal in advancing indigenous and human rights in the region.
Bulkan has also made his mark internationally. He served as an expert member of the United Nations Human Rights Committee from 2019 to 2022, where he was elected one of its Vice-Chairpersons. In 2023, he was elected to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and currently serves as its Second Vice-President. His activism has extended to advocating against the death penalty and championing the rights of marginalised groups, including indigenous peoples, LGBT persons, and people living with HIV/AIDS.
In recognition of his contributions, Bulkan received the Anthony Sabga Caribbean Award for Public and Civic Contributions in 2017 and was named a PANCAP/CARICOM Champion for Change that same year.
Announcing the appointment, CCJ President and Chairman of the RJLSC, Justice Winston Anderson, stressed that the selection process was rigorous and impartial. “The RJLSC has the legal responsibility of making appointments to the office of Judge of the Caribbean Court of Justice and makes these appointments based solely on the merits of the applicants, including their expertise, integrity, and dedication to justice,” Anderson said. He disclosed that the Commission received 26 applications from across the globe, including Australia, Kenya, Sri Lanka, and the Caribbean. Five candidates—three men and two women—were shortlisted before Bulkan was appointed.
Justice Bulkan, who holds degrees from the University of the West Indies, University College London, and York University in Canada, is expected to bring to the CCJ a blend of legal expertise, judicial experience, and a lifelong commitment to human rights.
