Dr Chile Eboe-Osuji of Nigeria and Canada has been selected by the Regional Judicial and Legal Services Commission (RJLSC), the independent body responsible for recruiting staff and judges for the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ), to join the CCJ as a Judge.
A release from the CCJ today said that he will fill the vacancy that will be created by the retirement of Justice Andrew Burgess on 11 April 2025.
The release from the CCJ said that 26 applications were received from the United States of America, Canada, Nigeria, Barbados, Jamaica, Guyana, Sri Lanka, Saint Lucia, Fiji, Cameroon, Kenya, Pakistan, Australia, and Trinidad and Tobago. Of the applications received, five candidates, three males and two females, were shortlisted for further consideration and subsequently interviewed.
Dr Eboe-Osuji is an international jurist who served as a Judge of the International Criminal Court (ICC), the Hague, from March 2012 to March 2018. The release said that he then served as the President of the ICC from March 2018 to March 2021. Prior to joining the ICC, Dr Eboe-Osuji was the Legal Advisor to the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. In that capacity, he spearheaded the writing of amicus curiae submissions to the European Court of Human Rights and the United States Supreme Court. He served as principal appeals counsel for the Prosecution in the Charles Taylor Case at the Special Court for Sierra Leone. He has held several posts at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, including Head of Chambers and Lead Prosecution Trial Counsel.
He practised law as a barrister before trial courts in Nigeria and Canada and conducted appeals before the Court of Appeal for Ontario (Canada) and the Supreme Court of Canada.
The release said that Dr Eboe-Osuji also taught international criminal law as an adjunct professor at the Faculty of Law of the University of Ottawa, Canada, and has an extensive record of legal scholarship and publications, including the books titled International Law and Sexual Violence in Armed Conflicts, and Protecting Humanity (ed).
In making the announcement, the Chairman of the RJLSC and President of the CCJ, Justice Adrian Saunders, took the opportunity to commend the independent and meritocratic process used to recruit Judges of the Court, stating, “The RJLSC prides itself on a recruitment process that is both meritocratic and fiercely independent. Each appointment reflects our unwavering commitment to selecting individuals of the highest calibre based solely on their expertise, integrity, and dedication to justice”.
He said that the process ensures that our Court continues to be a beacon of “fairness and excellence, characterised by the utmost professionalism and impartiality.”
Dr Eboe-Osuji is expected that Dr Eboe-Osuji will be sworn in in April 2025.
