Up to the time of publication the following tributes to the late Ian Neville Chang were available to the Guyana Review for publication.
Statement from the Government of Guyana
His Excellency, David Granger, President of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana is saddened at the death of former Chief Justice (Ag) Ian Neville Chang. Justice Chang, who last served as acting Chief justice from 2000 to 2015, died today (Saturday November 16, 2019). President Granger extends heartfelt condolences to his immediate family members, relatives and friends.
Statement from the Supreme Court of the Judicature
“Justice Chang served his profession and fellow Guyanese with great honour and integrity. His was a life of service to the nation. He was respected for his phenomenal legal intellect and was a fountain of legal knowledge which he readily shared. Justice Chang’s death will undoubtedly leave a void in the justice system and with colleagues within the legal fraternity whose lives he impacted.”
Statement from the Bar Council of the Bar Association of Guyana
It was with a sincere sense of loss, together with an appreciation of the blessing of mercy, that The Bar Association of Guyana was placed in a state of mourning with information of the death of former acting Chief Justice, Senior Counsel Ian Chang, C.C.H, who died on the 16th November, 2019.
For Chang, S.C., he made law his life. His life was a testimony of dedication in, and to the law. His love for the law, was one he demonstrated and shared with all of us who had any opportunity to have an interaction with him. This affection for the law, was revealed and communicated in words, thoughts and actions which can be described as “Chang style”. We of the Bar Association know that his death is a loss of a friend and a mentor.
His service was first at the Chambers of the Director of Public Prosecutions, then after a short period in private practice, his service to the judiciary commenced and concluded with his retirement as acting Chief Justice. His death is therefore a loss both for the profession as well as the judiciary. In death, we remember and reflect on the life. For Chang, S.C., his life will live on in the memories of us at the Bar, together with the volumes of his written decisions. For many of us at the Bar, he will always fondly be remembered simply as ‘Chief’.
The Bar Association of Guyana extends its deepest sympathy and condolences to his sorrowing relatives and friends at this time. He is now former Chief Justice acting, Senior Counsel Ian Chang of Blessed Memory.
Statement from the People’s Progressive Party
“The General Secretary and party joins with the rest of Guyana in mourning the passing of this great son of the soil… His career in the legal field spanned several decades, during which he served with distinction… His death dealt a great blow to the legal fraternity as it leaves a great hole to be filled.”
