The Judicial Committee (Cayman Islands) Order 2025
The Judicial Committee (Cayman Islands) Order 2025, made on February 5th, 2025, and effective February 6th, 2025, designates the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands as a superior court under the Judicial Committee Amendment Act 1895.
This designation clarifies the eligibility of Cayman Islands judges to potentially sit on the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council.
Arguments For
- Intended benefits: Clarifies the eligibility of Cayman Islands judges to serve on the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, potentially broadening expertise and representation.
- Evidence cited: Section 1 of the Judicial Committee Amendment Act 1895 provides the legal basis for this designation.
- Implementation methods: A simple Order in Council names the Grand Court.
- Legal/historical basis: This draws on the existing Judicial Committee Amendment Act 1895, implementing its provision for naming superior courts.
Arguments Against
- Potential impacts: May not have significant impact, merely clarifying existing practice or potential future appointments.
- Implementation challenges: The implementation is straightforward and poses minimal challenges.
- Alternative approaches: No readily apparent alternative approaches to achieving the stated objective exist.
- Unintended effects: No obvious unintended consequences are foreseen.
- This Order may be cited as the Judicial Committee (Cayman Islands) Order 2025 and comes into force on 6th February 2025.
- The Grand Court of the Cayman Islands is named as a superior court for the purposes of the Judicial Committee Amendment Act 1895.
This section establishes the short title of the Order as the 'Judicial Committee (Cayman Islands) Order 2025' and sets its commencement date as February 6th, 2025.
It also formally names the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands as a superior court.
This naming is crucial because it relates to the eligibility criteria outlined in the Judicial Committee Amendment Act 1895.
EXPLANATORY NOTE (This note is not part of the Order) Section 1 of the Judicial Committee Amendment Act 1895 provides (in part) that if any person is or was a Chief Justice or judge of a superior court in His Majesty's Dominions named for these purposes, and is a member of His Majesty's Privy Council, that person is a member of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council. This Order names the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands as a superior court for the purposes of section 1 of the Judicial Committee Amendment Act 1895.
The explanatory note clarifies the legal context.
It explains that the 1895 Act dictates that judges from specified superior courts within the British Commonwealth, who are also Privy Council members, automatically become members of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council.
This Order, therefore, extends this eligibility to judges from the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands.