Appointments of Grand Court Judges

His Excellency the Acting Governor, Franz Manderson, is pleased to announce the appointments of Justice Marlene Carter and Mr. Jalil Asif KC as Judges of the Cayman Islands Grand Court.

The Judicial and Legal Services Commission (the “JLSC”) recently carried out an open recruitment process advertising the post both locally and overseas. Following a short-listing and interview process, Justice Carter and Mr. Asif were recommended as the successful candidates to Her Excellency the Governor, Jane Owen, who subsequently approved the recommendations.

In commenting on the appointments, His Excellency, the Acting Governor said, “I am pleased to support the appointment of Justice Carter and Mr. Asif, to the bench of the Cayman Islands Grand Court. Having a strong Judiciary which administers the law independently of the Executive and the Legislature arms of Government is critical to the upholding of the Constitution, law and order and the effective functioning of our society. I wish the new Justices every success as they carry out their responsibilities.”

The Chief Justice, the Honourable Justice Margaret Ramsay-Hale, commented, “Over the years, the domestic and international business of the Court has increased in complexity, volume and urgency. The work in the criminal, family and financial services divisions often involves high value, complex cross-border cases of significant importance and interest to the people of the Cayman Islands and internationally. We are pleased to add both Justice Carter and Mr. Asif KC to the full-time bench of the Court. They each bring a substantial fund of experience to the bench. I would note that Mr. Asif’s appointment is to a newly established judicial position which will add much needed capacity to the Court allowing us to better discharge our commitment to delivering justice fairly and efficiently.”

Justice Marlene Carter is a Caymanian with ten years judicial experience in various jurisdictions. Justice Carter has served as an Acting Judge of the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands since 2017, presiding regularly across the criminal, civil and family divisions of the Grand Court. Prior to this she was a Puisne Judge in the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (ECSC), assigned to St Kitts and Nevis as the Resident High Court Judge. Justice Carter has also served as Duty Judge for the ECSC assigned to Anguilla and as an Acting Puisne Judge (Civil Division) in the ECSC assigned to St Lucia.

Before being appointed to the Bench, Justice Carter held the position of Deputy Director of the Tax Information Authority (now the Department for International Tax Cooperation) in the Ministry for Financial Services of the Cayman Islands Government, liaising with the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) on international tax information agreements and serving as a Country Assessor for the OECD in peer review evaluations of other jurisdictions. In the previous ten years, Justice Carter practiced at the public and private Bars in the Cayman Islands; she was a Senior Associate at a local law firm from 2005-2010; and she served as Crown Counsel in the Attorney General’s Chambers between 2000-2005, latterly in the Legal Department’s International Cooperation Unit. Prior to relocating to the Cayman Islands, Justice Carter worked in Trinidad and Tobago as Legal Counsel for Petrotrin, Senior Legal Officer for the Ministry of National Security and State Counsel for the Director of Public Prosecutions; and in the Turks and Caicos Islands as Crown Counsel in the Attorney General’s Chambers. Justice Carter graduated from the University of the West Indies in 1992; she was first called to the Bar in Trinidad and Tobago in 1994; and is a certified Civil and Commercial Mediator.

Jalil Asif KC is a British national who has served as a Recorder of the Crown Court and County Court in the Midland Circuit in England and Wales from 2005-2015. During his tenure as a Recorder Mr Asif heard criminal cases in the Crown Court, appeals from magistrates, and presided over various types of civil cases. Since 2014, Mr Asif has been employed at Kobre & Kim (Cayman), where he is currently Managing Partner. Mr Asif transferred to his current role in the Cayman Islands from Kobre & Kim UK LLP. Prior to that he was a Barrister for 22 years. Mr Asif graduated from Cambridge University in 1987, and has participated in several other professional training courses in both judicial and legal areas. He was called to the Bar in the United Kingdom in 1989, the British Virgin Islands in 2012 and the Cayman Islands in 2014, and was appointed King’s Counsel in 2010.