Caribbean Integration Law

Two key regional organisations in the Caribbean, the Caribbean Community and the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States, had their roles fundamentally expanded in 2001 by treaties that developed a single market and a regional court. This book sets out the new roles of these organizations and their impact on regional integration in the Caribbean.

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Caribbean Integration Law offers a comprehensive legal analysis of the current treaties and rules governing the two main regional organisations in the Caribbean, the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS). Both organisations are operating under new treaties, the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas and the Revised Treaty of Basseterre, respectively, which created the CARICOM Single Market and Economy, and the OECS Economic Union. The single market and economic union were built upon principles of free movement of goods, labour, and capital, and a common external tariff.

This book reviews the foundations of Caribbean regional integration, the institutional frameworks of the two regional organisations, and fleshes out the scope and context of the legal systems created by the treaties. It also reviews the dispute settlement mechanisms under both treaties, including the increasingly active role of the Caribbean Court of Justice, which allows persons to enforce their treaty rights directly before the Court. The book offers selective comparisons to the current rules governing the European Union, and integrates crucial insights from the field of public international law, including the law of treaties and international institutional law.