Jamaica's government has filed a slavery reparations petition with King Charles III, with Culture Minister Olivia Grange leading a delegation to Britain, Al Jazeera and others reported.

The petition asks the King, in his capacity as Jamaica's head of state, to refer three questions concerning slavery to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council.

The questions are whether the seizure of Africans, their forced transportation to Jamaica and their enslavement there as chattel was ever lawful under English law; whether it breached international law; and whether the United Kingdom is legally obliged to provide a reparatory remedy to the people of Jamaica.

Jamaica says it is the first time a Commonwealth state has used this legal route for reparatory justice. Ms Grange described the step as among the most significant developments in Jamaica's history since emancipation in the 1830s.

The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council has served as the court of final appeal for some Commonwealth countries. A procedure for advisory opinions exists, but interpretation of whether a referral can be made and how far any hearing extends is expected to be contested here.

The delegation also met British Museum officials to discuss the return of artefacts removed during the colonial era, a demand raised in several countries in recent years.

Attempts to address historical responsibility through legal procedure exist in various forms in Asia too. What procedural conclusion this case reaches is watched by those preparing comparable claims.