The theme for this year's meeting will be ‘Rule of Law and Sustainable Development’.
The Meeting of Law Ministers and Attorneys-General of Small Commonwealth Jurisdictions (LMSCJ) will take place at Marlborough House in London, United Kingdom, from 6 to 7 October 2016.
Since 1983, law ministers and attorneys-general of small Commonwealth jurisdictions have been meeting every three years to discuss common challenges and experiences. The last meeting of the LMSCJ was held in London in 2013 and the outcomes are accessible here.
As this year’s meeting will be the first meeting of the LMSCJ since the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development was adopted, its theme will be ‘Rule of Law and Sustainable Development’. The focus will be on policy, legal issues and challenges that small states face in strengthening legal frameworks for sustainable development. The meeting will be opened by Commonwealth Secretary-General Patricia Scotland, QC.
Key objectives:
- Achieve a consensus on how the LMSCJ can develop Commonwealth positions on specific issues impacting on small states which the Commonwealth could advance in international fora.
- Develop Commonwealth positions on the key themes discussed at the meeting.
- Develop elements of national action plans to implement reforms and the Sustainable Development Goals relating to the rule of law and governance.
Key themes:
- Advancing the Sustainable Development Goals
- Disaster Response Laws
- Climate Change and National Law
- The Arms Trade Treaty
- Cybercrime
- Independence of the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions
- Restorative justice in small states
In the interests of the environment this will be a paper free meeting. All meeting papers will be distributed via the LMSCJ workspace on Commonwealth Connects and delegates are encouraged to access and download these prior to their attendance.
