Belize High Court Makes First Referral to CCJ

The Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) has received its first-ever referral from a national court, marking an important legal development for the Caribbean Community (CARICOM).

On April 7, 2026, the CCJ held a case management conference after the High Court of Belize submitted a legal question for interpretation. The referral arises from the case G. Anwar Barrow and others v. Financial Services Commission and the Attorney General of Belize, which was sent to the regional court on March 3, 2026.

The question placed before the CCJ relates to how certain provisions in Belize’s Companies Act should be interpreted alongside rules in the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas (RTC) that prohibit anti-competitive business conduct.

Under its Original Jurisdiction, the CCJ has the authority to interpret and apply the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas, which governs the CARICOM Single Market and Economy. When disputes involving the treaty arise in national courts across CARICOM member states, those courts must refer the legal interpretation of the treaty to the CCJ.

Once the CCJ provides its interpretation, the matter returns to the local court, which then applies the ruling to the facts of the case before delivering a final judgment.

Although this referral process has existed for years, no national court had made such a referral to the CCJ before 2026.

To address this, the CCJ launched a regional public education campaign to inform judges, attorneys, and businesses about how the referral system works. With funding support from the 11th European Development Fund, the court organized training sessions and outreach programs throughout the Caribbean.

The initiative began in Belize in 2022 and later expanded to Barbados, Guyana, Jamaica, Saint Lucia, Suriname, and Trinidad and Tobago. The CCJ also worked with private-sector groups to raise awareness about the rights and freedoms available under the CARICOM Single Market and Economy.

The referral from Belize now represents the first practical use of this process, allowing the CCJ to provide guidance on how regional trade rules should be interpreted in national legal disputes.