The Honourable Mr. Justice Denys Arthur Barrow was sworn in as Judge of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) today at a ceremony at the Best Western Plus Belize Biltmore Plaza, in his home country of Belize. The Honourable Mr Justice Barrow, who was sworn in by His Excellency Sir Colville Young, is the first citizen of Belize to be appointed to the CCJ bench.
Mr. Justice Barrow brings to the CCJ bench a forty-year legal career together with various stints of judicial appointments in judiciaries across the Region and membership on a world-renowned tribunal dealing with international labour and human rights law.
Mr Justice Barrow is a graduate of the University of the West Indies with a Bachelor of Laws and received a Legal Education Certificate from the Norman Manley Law School. He was admitted to the practice of law in Belize in 1977 and embarked on a career in private practice. In 1990, Mr. Justice Barrow was elevated to Senior Counsel and went on to start his own law firm 'Barrow and Company'.
Mr. Justice Barrow’s judicial career included service as High Court Judge in Saint Lucia, Grenada, Belize and the British Virgin Islands between 2001 and 2005, Justice of Appeal of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court from 2005 to 2008 and Justice of Appeal of the Court of Appeal of Belize from 2010 to 2012.
For nine years beginning in 2005 he served annually in Geneva, Switzerland as a member and then rapporteur of the International Labour Organisation’s Committee of Experts responsible for monitoring the application of international conventions on labour and human rights law. Members of the Committee are selected from across the world from among persons who have distinguished themselves as judges and professors of law.
In 2007, Mr. Justice Barrow was selected by the Belize Bar Association for its prestigious Custos Justitiae Award for excellence in the practice of law. In 2012, he was awarded the insignia for Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire for his distinguished service to Belize and the field of law
Mr. Justice Barrow was selected from among applicants from the Caribbean, North America and Eastern Europe. Judges appointed to the CCJ are evaluated on the basis of wide-ranging criteria that include; experience, high moral character, intellectual and analytical ability, sound judgment, integrity and an understanding of people and society.
Also in attendance at the ceremony was; the Right Honourable Sir Dennis Byron, President of the CCJ; the Honourable Mr. Justice Adrian Saunders, CCJ Judge; the Honourable Mr Justice Kenneth Benjamin, Chief Justice of Belize; Sir Manuel Sosa, President of the Court of Appeal of Belize; and Mr. Michael Peyrefitte, Attorney General of Belize. (Caribbean Court of Justice Press release)
