Justice Vasheist V Kokaram JA
Vasheist V Kokaram JA is a Judge of the Court of Appeal of Trinidad and Tobago. He previously served as a Judge of the High Court from 2009 to 2020. Prior to his appointment to the bench he was a partner in the law firm MG Daly and Partners specialising in industrial relations, public law, international trade and mediation. He was also a community mediator appointed under the Community Mediation Act from 1998 to 2005. He served as a temporary High Court judge in 2006 on a “backlog reduction” project in which he began the use of judicial mediation. He is a member of the Singapore International Mediation Centre Specialist Mediator Panel (Caribbean) 2024.
Justice Kokaram was the Chair of the Court Annexed Mediation Pilot Project in 2010 and currently a member on the ADR Implementation Committee in the Supreme Court, Trinidad and Tobago. He is a Certified Judicial Trainer – UCL Judicial Institute. He has conducted JSC sensitisation and training sessions for Registrars and Judges. He is also a judicial settlement officer from 2009 to date conducting Judicial Settlement Conferences (JSC) in commercial, family and appellate matters.
Justice Kokaram was the Chairman of the Mediation Board of Trinidad and Tobago (MBTT) 2010 to 2018. As Chairman he advocated the use and application of mediation as a means of developing a more peaceful and productive society. He led several public educational campaigns on mediation from 2010 to 2018 at the MBTT, which convened several national Annual Mediation Symposia and produced publications on mediation and certification.
He has been an associate tutor at the Hugh Wooding Law School from 2005 to date. Currently as a tutor in Civil Practice and Procedure, he promotes the development of settlement plans as a key component in the attorney’s pre-action and case management strategies and the development of collaborative law practices. In March 2022, he launched the “Peace Jurisprudence Clinic- The Healing Hub” as a component of the students Legal Aid Clinic at the Hugh Wooding Law School.
He has made presentations at several judicial and legal workshops and conferences.
