The Registrar & Chief Marshal, Ms. Paula Pierre, is a citizen of Trinidad & Tobago.  Ms. Pierre attended Bishop Anstey High School (St. Hilary’s) in Port of Spain, Trinidad, after which she took the Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of the West Indies (Cave Hill-1985).  Ms. Pierre obtained the Legal Education Certificate from the Hugh Wooding Law School and was admitted to the Bar of Trinidad & Tobago in 1987.

Between 1987 and 1990, Ms. Pierre was in private practice, gaining considerable experience in the civil and matrimonial jurisdiction in the Magistrates’ Courts and the High Court of Justice of Trinidad & Tobago.  Such experience included the preparation and filing of applications for Letters of Administration and Probate, preparation of opinions and drafting of agreements.  From 1990 to 1998, Ms. Pierre served as Assistant Registrar and Deputy Marshal of the High Court, in which role she was responsible for: adjudication on a variety of pre- and post-trial applications made by litigants, exercising, in relation to such applications, the authority of a Judge in chambers; assistance in training of Court personnel on legislation affecting the operation of the Registry; performing the legal and quasi-judicial functions assigned by the Registrar of the High Court in respect of the Civil, Criminal, Matrimonial and Court of Appeal Registries.

From 1998 to 2003, Ms. Pierre was Deputy Registrar and Deputy Marshal of the High Court of Trinidad & Tobago.  Her responsibilities included, among others: the provision of professional and technical support to the Registrar; service as secretary to departmental committees; service on other committees such as the Bailiffs’ Implementation Committee and the Family Court Committee and organisation of the annual ceremony for admission to the Bar. On two occasions, November-December 1999, and November 2000 to August 2001, Ms. Pierre acted as Registrar & Marshal of the Supreme Court of Trinidad & Tobago.  Among the duties of this most important of legal offices, Ms. Pierre was charged with: ensuring the smooth and efficient operation of and supervising the legal and quasi-judicial work of the Registries of the Supreme Court; supervising the work of the Deputy and Assistant Registrars; acting as liaison between members of the public, litigants and attorneys-at-law and the Judges and Masters of the Court in relation to all matters before the Court and performing statutory functions under a variety of Acts.

Ms. Pierre was an Associate Tutor at the Hugh Wooding Law School from 2002 to 2004, where she conducted tutorials in Family Practice & Procedure, Remedies and Civil Practice and Procedure I.

During 2003-2004, Ms. Pierre returned to private practice, with J. D. Sellier & Company, one of the foremost legal firms in Trinidad & Tobago.  At Sellier, Ms. Pierre gained much experience in civil litigation as an instructing attorney on interlocutory applications before the Master and Judge in chambers; in preparing and filing writs of summonses, judgement summonses, bills of costs and lists of documents and in preparation of briefs for counsel.

Ms. Paula Pierre was appointed Registrar & Chief Marshal of the Caribbean Court of Justice on 3 January 2005.