FORMER president of the Court of Appeal Justice Dennis Morrison was on Friday remembered as a “revered Caribbean lawyer” known for his “phenomenal work ethic” that patented the “legendary career” of a man of compassion who defended the poor and voiceless.

In a special sitting of Jamaica’s Court of Appeal that lasted just under two hours, Morrison, who was the first Jamaican graduate of Norman Manley Law School to be appointed Queen’s Counsel, was hailed by jurists both local and international.

Current President of the Appeal Court Justice Patrick Brooks, leading the tributes, said, “to say that he was great is no flight into the hyperbole, and Dennis would confess to us at the Court of Appeal that he was an insomniac. It is no wonder then, with his dedication to duty and passion for hard work, that he reached and kept the heights.”

Justice Brooks further hailed Morrison for “his phenomenal work ethic” noting that “apart from perhaps being the leading judgment writer on the court, his judgments were so impactful that many are quoted as the basis for essential principles of law”.

“His impact on the legal profession in Jamaica is unmatched; he had taught law students for about 40 years. He really had a legendary career and was a man to be respected,” he stated.

Head of the judiciary, Chief Justice Bryan Sykes said Morrison, who taught him as a law student, “was indeed an honourable man”.

“His scholastic achievements were well known and quite likely will be spoken of by others,” Justice Sykes said in steering his focus to ‘Justice Morrison, the man, the human being behind the titles and accomplishments’.

“One of the first things that struck me was the ease with which he explained complex legal concepts, their interaction with each other, and how they applied in real world to actual cases. During classes, no question was thought too silly to ask — and many were asked but with Dennis the questioner would never know. He treated the strangest of questions in such a manner that the questioner was spared immediate embarrassment,” said the chief justice, who shared that he met Justice Morrison during his first year at Norman Manley Law School in 1984.

“When one combines the ability to make complex ideas understandable to first-year law students with mastery of language, elegance of speech, and fluidity of delivery you realised you were in the presence of a master teacher,” Justice Sykes said, adding, “Dennis was gracious to opponents and treated them as equals, even if they were new members of the Bar. He bore no grudges.”

Meanwhile Justice Hillary Phillips, retired judge of the Court of Appeal and who met Morrison in 1968 when they enrolled in undergraduate studies, said, “It was clear from then that Justice Morrison was special… he was then and continued to be up until that very last weekend a very potent, charming, sexy, engaging, polished and genteel gentleman who was beloved by all — men and women alike, but maybe by women a bit more. He opened doors, pulled back chairs, and walked down stairs ahead of us, facing all and any oncoming dangers.

“He was quietly supportive, of great intellect but never boastful, always willing to share information. He was a defender of the poor and the indigent and those who had no voice; he was committed to preserving human rights. He was a Caribbean lawyer, known and revered throughout the region,” she added.

Justice St Micheal Hylton, King’s Counsel, judge of the Court of Appeal of Turks and Caicos, said though Justice Morrison’s time in retirement was so short, he achieved in that period more than many achieve professionally.

And Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Paula Llewellyn, King’s Counsel, speaking during the sitting said simply, “he was a legend”.

“His aura of calm and his beautiful, kind way made young counsel feel at ease. I have often thought, as I considered his life and legacy as one of our jurisdiction’s greatest legal giants that, for those who would embrace artificial intelligence, it should be the brain of a Dennis Morrison that should be the prototype of artificial intelligence because at the heart of it you would have a heart that would beat kindly,” the DPP declared.

Morrison, who retired from the court in 2020, passed on Saturday, February 3 at 73 years of age. He was called to the Bar in Jamaica in 1975, and practised for 25 years before transitioning to the bench. He also served as a judge of the Court of Appeal of Belize (2004 to 2015) and acted as a judge of the Eastern Caribbean Court of Appeal (January 2015). He had also served as a judge of the Court of Appeal of the Cayman Islands since 2015.