His Excellency the Governor, Martyn Roper, OBE is pleased to announce the appointment of Ms. Vanessa Allard as a full-time Magistrate of the Summary Court.

The Judicial and Legal Services Commission recently carried out an open recruitment process advertising the post both locally and overseas. Following a short-listing process, an interview panel interviewed five persons for this post ultimately recommending Ms. Allard as the successful candidate. His Excellency subsequently accepted the recommendation.

“Magistrates in the Summary Court preside over a wide range of civil and criminal matters including in extremely specialist courts such as the Drug Rehabilitation Court” His Excellency the Governor Martyn Roper, OBE said. “I am pleased to appoint Ms. Allard as a full-time Magistrate given the generalist experience she has gained during her legal and acting judicial career to date” His Excellency continued.

“Ms. Allard has contributed significantly to the Summary Courts since she was appointed as an Acting Magistrate in June 2020” the Honourable Chief Justice said. “We look forward to formally welcoming Ms. Allard as a full-time member of the judiciary in due course and to her role in the positive growth of the Summary Court under the leadership of Chief Magistrate Foldats” the Chief Justice continued.

Ms. Allard will take up her full-time post on new appointment on 12 July 2021.

Note
Vanessa Allard has over 20 years’ experience as a litigator. Initially practising in Jamaica for 5 years, Ms. Allard has spent the past 15 years practising in the Cayman Islands, most notably as an active member of the Family Law Bar. Ms. Allard is a graduate of the University of the West Indies and the Norman Manley Law School, and earned an MBA from the University of Liverpool. Ms. Allard served as a member of the FIFA Ethics Committee for four years from 2013-2017 and has served the community in numerous volunteer roles on various civic groups such as Big Brothers Big Sisters and Legal Befrienders. Ms. Allard has served as an Acting Magistrate in the criminal, civil, traffic, specialist domestic violence, and family and maintenance courts in the Cayman Islands since June 2020. She obtained her LLB in 1997, an MBA in 2009 and was called to the Bar in 1999.