Caribbean Court of Justice scraps panel selection after judges' allegations
All seven judges will now sit on every panel, as court president Winston Anderson rejects claims that panels were arranged to secure predetermined outcomes.
GEORGETOWN, Guyana. The Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) has moved to quell allegations that its president chose judges to sit on particular cases while excluding others, announcing that all judges will now sit on every panel.
The Trinidad-based court, the Caribbean Community's highest appeals court, made the announcement late on Wednesday, a week after several judges accused court president Winston Anderson of unjustly altering judicial panels in some cases.
Under the new arrangements, which take "immediate effect", "all judges of the court will sit on all panels, subject to a judge being formally excused from sitting for a legitimate reason", the announcement said.
Allegations rejected
Anderson said he rejected "entirely the suggestion that panels of this court have been constituted or altered to secure predetermined outcomes."
"Such allegations are unsupported by the facts, inconsistent with the court's long-established practices, and contrary to the principles upon which this court has operated since its establishment," he said.
"However, to put this matter to rest, going forward, every judge of the court will be required to sit on every panel, unless the judge opts out for a legitimate reason and is excused," he added.
A bitter row
Jamaica-born Anderson, who has led the court for just over a year, has faced strong criticism from colleagues who accuse him of acting like an authoritarian and of trying to influence decisions in some cases. He denied the charges in a formal statement last week.
The row broke out in early August after the Trinidad Express newspaper published verbatim complaints from several judges about operations at the court. The judges had also been feuding over dress during formal sessions.
Authorities have since announced plans for a small commission of inquiry to examine the allegations.
The dispute comes amid a major row in Jamaica, where the governing Labour Party has refused to make any effort to join the court because of doubts about its impartiality and the closeness of judges to regional politicians.
The CCJ announcement came hours after Antigua's Prime Minister Gaston Browne said there were no plans for a referendum on whether the country should join Guyana, Barbados, Belize, Dominica and St Lucia in using the court for criminal and civil appeals. No other member states have signalled plans to do so.
