Justice Saunders is new CCJ president

St Vincent-born Justice Adrian Saunders was officially sworn in as the next President of the Port-of-Spain, Trinidad-based Caribbean Court of Justice at a ceremony at Montego Bay Convention Center, Jamaica.

The oath of office was administered by Jamaica Governor General Patrick Allen at the inauguration ceremony last week.

The ceremony took place as part of the activities of the 39th Regular Meeting for the Conference of Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community (Caricom), at the Montego Bay Convention Center.

Justice Saunders, who became the court’s third president, has replaced Sir Dennis Byron following an “exhaustive international search,” according to a news release from the CCJ.

He has been serving in the court since 2005 and “has contributed immensely to the administration of justice and judicial functions of the court.”

Justice Saunders is also the chairman of the Caribbean Association of Judicial Officers (CAJO) and the course director of the Halifax-based Commonwealth Judicial Education Institute’s (CJEI) Intensive Study Program.

“In April 2008, he was appointed to the Advisory Board of the Global Judicial Integrity Network by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UN)-DC),” the released added.

Justice Saunders worked with Sir Dennis at the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court and was later reunited with him in 2011 when Sir Dennis was appointed president of the CCJ.

He paid tribute to Sir Dennis’ tenure at the CCJ.