CARICOM | Jamaican Jurist Winston Anderson Named President of Caribbean Court of Justice

MONTEGO BAY, Jamaica (WiredJA)- In a landmark appointment for Caribbean jurisprudence, Jamaican-born jurist The Hon. Winston Anderson has been elevated to President of the prestigious Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ).

The recommendation from the Regional Judicial Legal Services Commission (RJLSC) received unanimous approval from Caribbean Community (Caricom) leaders, marking a new chapter in the region’s judicial leadership.

Anderson, 65, brings impressive academic credentials to the role. A graduate of the University of the West Indies (UWI) where he later served as lecturer, he also earned a doctorate in philosophy from Cambridge University in 1988, specializing in International and Environmental Law. His journey from the classrooms of UWI to the highest court in the Caribbean represents a remarkable ascent in the legal profession.

The Trinidad-based CCJ, established on February 14, 2001, was designed to replace the London-based Privy Council as the region’s final appellate court. While most Caribbean nations recognize its original jurisdiction as an international tribunal interpreting the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas, only Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Guyana, and St. Lucia have fully embraced its Appellate Jurisdiction.

Justice Anderson’s legal training extends beyond academia. In 1988, he completed training at the Inns of Court School of Law in London and was called to the Bar of England and Wales as a Barrister of the Honourable Society of Lincoln’s Inn. His career includes appointments as senior lecturer at the University of Western Australia in 1996 and at UWI in 1999, demonstrating his international academic standing.

As a scholar, Anderson has made significant contributions to Caribbean legal literature. His book “The Law of the Sea in the Caribbean” examines how the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, adopted in Kingston in 1982, can contribute to economic and social development across the region. He also serves as Chairman of the CCJ Academy for Law and editor of the Eminent Caribbean Jurists Series, which has published works on international law jurists and pioneering Caribbean women jurists.

Anderson’s rise to judicial eminence began from humble origins. Born in Saint Ann’s Bay and raised in the rural village of Brittonville, he attended Brittonville Primary School before moving to Ferncourt High School and later transferring to Saint Andrew Technical High School in Kingston. His legal education commenced at UWI’s Faculty of Law in 1980, where he earned his Bachelor of Laws degree in 1983 and subsequently taught undergraduate courses while pursuing his Master’s.

His professional trajectory took a significant turn when he was appointed General Counsel of the Caribbean Community from 2003 to 2006, after which he returned to UWI as Professor of Law. That same year, he was called to the Bar of Jamaica. From 2007 to 2010, he served as Executive Director of the Caribbean Law Institute Centre.

On June 15, 2010, in a ceremony at King’s House, Jamaica, Professor Anderson was sworn in as Judge of the Caribbean Court of Justice, with Governor General Sir Patrick Allen presiding and attended by the Prime Minister, Opposition Leader, and other dignitaries. At just 49 years old, he made history as both the first Jamaican and youngest judge ever appointed to the CCJ.