Dominica to host Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court launch of new judicial year

Dominica will serve as host country for the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (ECSC), kicking off the new judicial year with its customary ceremonial opening on Monday, January 12, 2026.

A ECSC press release shared that this event will be held under the theme “The ECSC: Justice that Endures – Anchored in Independence, Strengthened through Trust.”

The Court of Appeal’s first sitting of 2026 is also scheduled to take place in the country.

The opening festivities typically begin with a church service across most Member States and Territories, followed by a procession leading to the High Court, where a formal Special Sitting will convene.

The church service is set for Fatima Catholic Church on Sunday, January 11, 2026, at 9 AM.

The following day, Monday, January 12, the celebration continues at 9:00 AM, with a procession to the State House Conference Room—designated as a court for the occasion—to officially mark the start of the Law Year. This will include a Guard of Honour inspection, immediately followed by the Special Sitting scheduled for 10:00 AM.

According to the release, for the first time in four years, simultaneous court sessions will be held across the other eight Member States and Territories of the OECS. Her Ladyship the Hon. Mde. Margaret Price Findlay, Acting Chief Justice, will deliver the keynote address from the Court in Dominica.

Her speech will be broadcast live to the other Member States and Territories through the media platforms of the Commonwealth of Dominica Information Services, as well as via the social media channels of the ECSC. Additionally, the address will be streamed live on the Court’s official website, Facebook page, and through the websites and social media outlets of the Government Information Services in each jurisdiction, along with UWITV.

The ECSC is encouraging community members to engage with the proceedings of the Law Year’s opening, either by attending the church service or the Special Sitting, or by tuning in through various media channels to witness the event remotely.

Founded in 1967 through West Indies Associated States Supreme Court Order No. 223, the ECSC functions as a superior court of record for the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS).

Its jurisdiction encompasses six independent nations—Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines—as well as three British Overseas Territories, including Anguilla, the British Virgin Islands, and Montserrat. The court possesses unlimited jurisdiction within each of its Member States.