The release from the High Court adds, Dr Conteh leaves behind a rich and impressive legacy, having been known for his erudition and brilliant legal mind. He served Belize with distinction. As an outstanding jurist, he was fair and fearless." End quote.
To get more on that, today we also asked former Attorney General Godfrey Smith - who recruited Conteh in the year 2000 to comment on the former Chief Justice's contribution.
He said Conteh is the best Chief Justice Belize has had during his years of practice:
Godfrey Smith, Former Attorney General
"I think two of the biggest cases, not run of the mill at all, that he is responsible for is of course it was Dr. Conteh as the Chief Justice who ruled that customary land tenure of the indigenous Maya merits constitutional protection."
"Landmark. Landmark case. After that many places I went throughout the region they would inquire of the Chief Justice Conteh because that decision had ripple effect throughout it, it echoed throughout the region and that judgment has prevailed."
"And another case less well known would have been a case brought by the late Sir Barry Bowen relating to I think it was land rights to oil under the ground and so on. And the question arose in that case Chief Justice Conteh introduced into Belize the basic structured doctrine in simple terms that says that even though we used to believe that a government with the appropriate majority can amend anything in the constitution it wants. This theory, this principle said there are certain basic elements of the constitution that even with the requisite majority can't be changed such as fundamental rights and freedoms and independence of the judiciary."
"So that was another case that had profound impact."
Jules Vasquez
"But one has the sense that he was always writing especially the big judgments with an eye on history, with an eye on that it does not exist in this single moment. It would be read 10 years from now or 15 years from now."
Godfrey Smith, Former Attorney General
"For sure. Judges are humans and therefore not beyond the reach of vanity. And yes, as I'm sure it happened, you keep an eye on what are the important cases. You want your legacy to show that you distinguished yourself with heavy cases, with challenging cases, cases of great constitutional importance, groundbreaking cases. And otherwise, and I think he was alive to that and did the nation and himself well in the judgments that he rendered."
Jules Vasquez
"It can be seen that in the 21st century at least, or since independence, it can be seen that he's the apex judge. He's the best chief justice we've had based on what came out of court."
Godfrey Smith, Former Attorney General
"So far, based...there are Chief Justices before I entered the law, obviously I can't speak for them. From the time I became conscious of Chief Justices, and I think that would have been around the time of Sir Albert Steyn to the present, I would say yes, he is at the apex. The current Chief Justice is new, has I'm sure a long tenure, so that has yet to be seen, but up to this point in time, Dr. Conteh, in my view, would have been the best."
