Court rules St Lucia can join CCJ without referendum

(Jamaica Gleaner) The Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court of Appeal has ruled that St Lucia does not require a referendum before becoming a full member of the Trinidad-based Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ).

A number of eminent jurists and the St Lucia government had sought the advice of the Court to determine whether there was an error in the Constitution that would allow for certain amendments before joining the CCJ.

This proposal originally came before Cabinet in 2010 under the former administration following a document prepared by the Attorney General’s Chambers.

While a number of countries, including St Lucia, are signatories to the original jurisdiction of the court, only Barbados, Guyana and Belize are members of the appellate jurisdiction.