Becoming a High Court Judge: Justice Barbara Cooke-Alleyne's Dream Realized

Becoming a High Court judge is a dream come true for Justice Barbara Cooke-Alleyne.

The renowned attorney-at-law who was sworn in office on Tuesday at State House told reporters that she was finally living the dream she longed for since she was a little girl.

With a wide grin, she said: “I am excited. I’m thankful to God for the opportunity to have this chance to serve the people of Barbados.”

Asked if this was something she always wanted to accomplish, she answered: “Believe it or not, from childhood . . . this was just something I wanted to do. My father encouraged me along the way, my mom as well. My mother worked at Parliament with a man called George Brancker, who gave me lots of bios to read on judges from England and that just spurred me on even more. So, the childhood dream actually came true.”

The newly appointed High Court judge thanked her family for their support and noted that while this would always be a memorable occasion for her, it was bittersweet.

She said: “I just want to thank my family for their support over the years. My husband and my children are very supportive; the boys learned early that law is a very jealous mistress and they got to understand the demands of the job. I managed to balance myself well in that act; I think that they understand even more and most of them like law. Some don’t because of the pressures that they see me go through as a lawyer.

“I’m thankful for that and to my parents as well who instilled in me discipline and the importance of education. They’re not here today, but I’m sure that they’re both proud to see me in this area today…. The Chief [Justice Sir Patterson Cheltenham] has told me that my father would be indeed. So I know that it’s a bittersweet day. Today is the anniversary of my father’s death.So I’m always a little sad on this day, but today is also a joyful day. So going forward, from now on, it will be a bittersweet January 2nd.”

Justice Cooke-Alleyne has been in the profession for 33 years after first studying law in 1991.

The former Senior Counsel was once the Registrar of the Supreme Court. She joined the public service in 1993 and worked in the Solicitor General Chambers as a Crown Counsel and Senior Crown Counsel before being promoted to Magistrate in 1995. She acted as Chief Magistrate in 2018 and High Court judge in 2019.

Cooke-Alleyne also has training in the law of children and has spent many years working with and advocating various social programmes for at-risk juveniles. (SZB)