The Rights to a Fair Trial

1955: The Right to a Fair Trial in the Cayman Island in the Cayman Islands.

In 1955, Mr. Ormond Panton, a prominent Caymanian politician, succeeded in affirming his right to a fair trial.  The Commissioner; the forerunner to the current position of Governor; had instructed the Collector of Taxes to sue Mr. Panton for non-payment of taxes due in respect of his vehicle.  The Commissioner, however, then ensured that he also personally ruled on the case that resulted in Mr. Panton’s conviction. 

Mr. Panton complained that he had not received a fair trial and that this was an abuse of power, which breached the principles of natural justice.  After some time, the Court of Appeal agreed with Mr. Panton and overturned his conviction.  The right to a fair and public hearing by a competent, independent and impartial tribunal established by law is now enshrined in Article 14 of the United Nations International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights was adopted in 1966; some 11 years after Mr. Panton asserted, in the Cayman Islands, the right that is now found in Article 14 of this International Covenant.  Whilst the provision of human rights in the Cayman Islands would undoubtedly improve with the inclusion of a Chapter of Fundamental Rights in a new Constitution, this would be a supplement to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which, although not directly enforceable, has been extended to the Cayman Islands since 1976.  Containing rights such as the right to a fair trial, along with the inalienable rights to life and liberty, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights is therefore distinctly relevant to the Cayman Islands.