FORMER President of the Court of Appeal Justice Ian Forte was on Friday lauded for his stewardship of Jamaica’s highest court and his immense contribution to national and Caribbean jurisprudence.

Retired Justice Forte, the spouse of parliamentarian Marlene Malahoo Forte, died at his home early Friday. He was 89.

Justice Forte, who had a trailblazing career which spanned decades of service at the highest levels of the legal system, was elevated to the bench as a judge of appeal in January 1988, rising to become the president of the Court of Appeal in 1999 serving until retirement in 2005. During his tenure on the bench he was invested with the Order of Jamaica.