Rights
1978 Constitution with final appeal to the Caribbean Court of Justice
The Commonwealth of Dominica Constitution Order 1978 established a parliamentary republic with a President as ceremonial head of state, elected by the House of Assembly, and a Prime Minister who commands its confidence. Chapter I sets out fundamental rights and freedoms, enforceable in the High Court under section 16. Dominica is unusual in the Eastern Caribbean in having accepted the appellate jurisdiction of the Caribbean Court of Justice, so the CCJ, not the Privy Council, is the final court.
Key rules
- Jurisdiction — Unitary republic; the ECSC High Court sits locally, the CCJ hears final appeals
- Deadline — Constitutional motion: no fixed limit, but delay may bar relief as an abuse of process
- Deadline — Appeal from the High Court to the Court of Appeal: 42 days for a final judgment
- Deadline — Election petition: 21 days from the declaration of the result
Governing law
- Commonwealth of Dominica Constitution Order 1978 (ss. 1 to 16)
- Constitution of Dominica (s. 103 (appeals))
- Agreement Establishing the Caribbean Court of Justice 2001
- Supreme Court Order 1967Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court
In practice
Because Dominica accepted the CCJ's appellate jurisdiction in 2015, its rights jurisprudence is developing along a different line from neighbours that remain with the Privy Council. The CCJ has been more willing to depart from older Privy Council authority, particularly on the savings clause that shields pre-independence laws from constitutional challenge, so counsel should check whether a point still rests on a Privy Council decision the CCJ has declined to follow.