Bahamas PM nominates Justice Cheryl Bazard for top climate law post
Key Points(5)
- Bahamas Prime Minister Philip Davis has nominated Supreme Court Justice Cheryl E.
- Bazard for the position of secretary-general of the Commission of Small Island States on Climate Change and International Law (COSIS).
- Davis announced the nomination on Wednesday, November 11, during the annual meeting of COSIS member states at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP31) in Antalya, Türkiye.
- The nomination comes as COSIS marks five years of advancing international law to address the impacts of climate change on small island nations.
- Established in 2021 by the prime ministers of Antigua and Barbuda and Tuvalu ahead of COP26, COSIS brings small island states together to strengthen their legal standing in international climate negotiations.
Bahamas Prime Minister Philip Davis has nominated Supreme Court Justice Cheryl E. Bazard for the position of secretary-general of the Commission of Small Island States on Climate Change and International Law (COSIS).
Davis announced the nomination on Wednesday, November 11, during the annual meeting of COSIS member states at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP31) in Antalya, Türkiye.
The nomination comes as COSIS marks five years of advancing international law to address the impacts of climate change on small island nations.
Established in 2021 by the prime ministers of Antigua and Barbuda and Tuvalu ahead of COP26, COSIS brings small island states together to strengthen their legal standing in international climate negotiations.
The commission has played a significant role in securing international legal opinions on climate obligations. In May 2024, the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea ruled that greenhouse gas emissions constitute pollution of the marine environment.
The Bahamas also participated in climate change proceedings before the International Court of Justice (ICJ), submitting written and oral arguments. In July 2025, the court unanimously confirmed that states have binding legal obligations to protect the climate system.
“Five years ago, small island states made a choice. We would no longer wait for the goodwill of others. We would use the law,” Davis said.
“The law has answered. The next chapter will be harder. It calls for a Secretary-General who has spent a career making institutions answer to the law. Justice Bazard will serve every member of the Commission with fairness and resolve.”
Bazard was appointed to the Supreme Court of The Bahamas in 2025. Before joining the judiciary, she served as the country's ambassador to Belgium and head of mission to the European Union from 2022 to 2025.
As chair of the Small Island Developing States Forum of the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States, she addressed the ICJ during its climate change proceedings in December 2024. She also represented The Bahamas in Hamburg when the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea delivered its advisory opinion.
Bazard, who was called to the Bar in 1991 and holds the rank of King's Counsel, previously served as a senator from 2012 to 2014 and as counsel in the Office of the Attorney General.
Her professional experience also includes serving as regional director of compliance, corporate secretary and counsel at FirstCaribbean International Bank from 1998 to 2006. During that period, she developed anti-money laundering and governance policies for 16 Caribbean countries. She was also the founding president of the Bahamas Association of Compliance Officers.
Bazard holds a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Buckingham, where she received the Tunku Abdul Rahman Prize for achieving a first-class pass in international law. She also earned a Master of Laws in Financial Compliance and Risk Management, summa cum laude, from Thomas Jefferson School of Law.
Her academic journey began at the College of The Bahamas, now the University of The Bahamas.
The Office of the Prime Minister said further updates on Davis' engagements at COP31 will be provided.
