From Portfolio of Legal Affairs.

The Cabinet has approved the Legal Services Bill, 2020 (the “Bill”) which has been submitted to the Legislative Assembly to be dealt with at the next meeting subject to the Bill having a 28-day public consultation period.

The Bill was gazetted Tuesday, 27 October 2020 in Legislation Gazette No. 79 of 2020 and can be accessed at http://gazettes.gov.ky/portal/pls/portal/docs/1/13022505.PDF.

The Bill is aimed at modernising how the legal profession in the Cayman Islands is regulated.

The practice of law in the Cayman Islands is currently regulated by the Legal Practitioners Law (2015 Revision) that was first enacted in 1969, over half a century ago.  

Although there have been numerous amendments over the years to the Legal Practitioners Law (2015 Revision) to reflect the evolution of the practice of law in and from the Cayman Islands, the fact is that the current framework is inadequate to regulate the contemporary nature of 21^st century legal profession operating in the Cayman Islands with a significant international component.

The number of attorneys and the nature of law practice in the Cayman Islands have changed significantly over the decades to the point of rendering the current Legal Practitioners Law almost obsolete, hence the need for a new Law.

In order to assist the general public to better understand the provisions of the Bill, an Executive Summary explaining each clause of the Bill has been published as supplement 1 of Extraordinary Gazette No 89, today  Wednesday, 28 October 2020 which can be accessed athttp://gazettes.gov.ky/portal/pls/portal/docs/1/13022519.PDF.

Comments on the Bill should be submitted to Ms Tesia Scott at [email protected] in the Government Administration Building, Portfolio of Legal Affairs.

The deadline for submission of comments is 24 November 2020.