Judicial Committee of the Privy Council: The Persistence of a British Colonial Institution

Harold Young, J D

doi:10.22158/eprd.v1n1p42

Abstract

Following the British decolonization process, the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC) continued as the final appellate court for many new states. Originally designed as a colonial court, the JCPC, therefore, continues to influence independent states. This testifies to the persistence of British colonial influence in the jurisprudence of former colonies. This research on the JCPC provides evidence colonial influences persist beyond the ceremonial and examines the Gambia and New Zealand as cases illustrating different paths to shedding this colonial institutional.

Highlights

From 1947 through the mid-1980s, new states emerged onto the world stage
This paper posits that the persistence of one particular British colonial institution, the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC), was more than ceremonial, informal, or due to the fact a particular nation continued to be a member of the British Commonwealth
What makes the phenomenon of the persistence of the JCPC unique is the fact that the U.K. made the court available to former colonies, and some new states did accede to the JCPC upon independence, effectively outsourcing the final appellate court to the former colonial power—an apparent affront to the traditional understanding of state sovereignty (Brown, 2002)

Summary

Introduction

From 1947 through the mid-1980s, new states emerged onto the world stage. Following the end of British and other European imperial rule, independence was celebrated across Africa, the Pacific, and the Caribbean. This paper posits that the persistence of one particular British colonial institution, the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC), was more than ceremonial, informal, or due to the fact a particular nation continued to be a member of the British Commonwealth. As of 2018, 16 states still retained Queen Elizabeth II as Head of State (Note 1) While this largely ceremonial link with the former colonial power is enshrined in their constitutions, of far more consequence, are where the JCPC continues as the final court of appeal for independent states. The Gambia gained in dependence in 1964 and retained the JCPC until 1996 These cases studies explicate the diverse circumstances under which each country severed this significant tie with the British Empire. These differences point to competing approaches in governance and policymaking by sovereign states, and how states view this extraterritorial court as a partner in policymaking and their approach to state sovereignty

Relationship with JCPC

Findings

Institute for International