Former Judge of the Caribbean Court of Justice, Duke Pollard, Dies at 86

GEORGETOWN, Guyana –Professor Duke Pollard, one of the architects of the Trinidad-based Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) has died in the United States, according to relatives and media reports here.

Justice Duke PollardThe Guyanese-born Justice Pollard, who was among the first set of judges at the CCJ that was established in 2001, died on Tuesday at a hospital. He was 86 years old.

A biography of Pollard posted on the CCJ’s website noted that he had “established himself as an expert jurist in international law, specializing in international economic law, the Law of the Sea, international institutional law, the Law of Treaties, general integration law and economic integration law.

“Apart from holding representational posts in numerous and varied international conferences, Mr. Justice Pollard has written extensively on a multiplicity of aspects of international law and has participated in the drafting of many important CARICOM instruments, including the original and revised Treaty of Chaguaramas and many of the agreements and protocols that pertain specifically to the Caribbean Court of Justice.

“He has authored a significant body of studies, articles, monographs, and draft treaties and legislation, constituting an impressive opus of reference material,” it added.

Pollard was a former Legal Consultant at the Guyana-based CARICOM)Secretariat. He left the CCJ in June 2010 and also served as Professor in the Law Department of the University of Guyana.

He played a major role in the revision of the Treaty of Chaguaramas, which governs the regional integration movement, CARICOM/.

Pollard also served in Guyana’s foreign service from 1970 to 1974 and was married to Donna née Grant.