The book "EASTERN CARIBBEAN SUPREME COURT: MODEL REGIONAL COURT" was launched last Friday in St. Lucia by its publishers the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (ECSC), headquartered there; following its printing by the Government Printery of Dominica .
Among those attending the launch were Chief Justice, Sir Brian Alleyne, several other OECS Judges, UWI Law Faculty Dean Professor, Simeon Mc Intosh and Former Dean Professor Emeritus, A.R. Carnegie.
The book , 458 textual pages and 57 prefatory pages, is a comprehensive analysis of the performance of the Court, over its first forty years, 1967 2007.
The vision for doing this study came from Sir Brian who perceived the need for a wholistic analysis of the work of the Court .
Sir Brian asked Dr. Alexis to write the book; and UWI Law Faculty Library Professor Senator Velma Newton to edit it.
Addressing the launch, Dr. Alexis said that certain decisions of ECSC, are certainly to be criticised . But this, he observed, is true of any court.
What is important, Alexis emphasised, is the overall performance of ECSC. Alexis observed that ECSC has been responding judiciously to such challenges as Anguilla secessionism 1967, the Grenada Revolution 1979 and the Maurice Bishop murder re-sentencing 2007.
Also, Alexis added, ECSC has been modernising its civil procedure to better serve justice; cherishing its independence; and preserving its integrity.
In short, overall, Alexis concluded that the Court has been producing an admirable jurisprudence, commanding respect, promoting pride in the Eastern Caribbean , building itself as a model regional court.
Professor Sen. Velma Newton told the launch that Alexis' book is "the first of its kind in the Commonwealth Caribbean " and she hailed it as an "outstanding contribution to the legal literature of the region".
Dr. Alexis was accompanied to the launch by his main GBSS motivator, Osbert Benjamin and his life-long friend and law-partner, Anselm Clouden .
