PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad and Tobago — President of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ), Justice Winston Anderson, is calling for the establishment of an international, corporate-funded compensation fund to respond to climate change-related disasters.

Dubbing it the International Climate Injuries Compensation (ICIC) Fund, Anderson said it would “assist in circumventing difficulties associated with assigning liability to major corporations or significant greenhouse gas (GHG) emitters; offer a viable alternative to protracted and complex litigation; and respond to recognition that corporations should bear a proportionate share of costs associated with climate-induced harm.”

The president made the remarks during the keynote address at the International Conference titled “Climate Change Advisory Opinions from International Courts: Exploring Synergies and Implications”, hosted by the Faculty of Law at The University of the West Indies (UWI), Cave Hill, in collaboration with the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) World Commission on Environmental Law.

The two-day conference, held on March 19 and March 20, 2026 at the Ralph Carnegie Law Lecture Theatre in Barbados, brought together leading jurists, scholars and practitioners to examine the evolving role of international courts in addressing climate change through advisory opinions.

Anderson underscored the growing importance of international judicial mechanisms in responding to the climate crisis, particularly in clarifying states’ legal obligations and advancing climate justice.

He also reflected on the unique vulnerabilities of small island developing states, including those in the Caribbean, which continue to face increasingly intense weather systems, such as Hurricane Melissa in October 2025.

While noting that in the Caribbean, there has already been recognition that environmental rights are human rights, President Anderson lamented that the existing Caribbean frameworks are not sufficient to deal with matters that arise outside of the Caribbean, for example, the climate crisis.

He emphasised the critical role of law in ensuring equitable and effective responses to climate impacts, noting the importance of accessible legal remedies to support vulnerable states and their citizens in managing loss and damage and rebuilding their economies.

The president suggested the establishment of an international convention, following which there would be compulsory funding paid by GHG corporations within the contracting states with annual contributions made based on the percentage of yearly GHG emissions.

Anderson noted that contracting states would be responsible for monitoring and reporting the entities to the fund. The ICIC Fund would be entirely consistent with the “Polluter Pays” principle and with the customary law responsibility of states to ensure that economic activities in their countries do not cause environmental harm or damage in other countries.