CAYMAN ISLANDS Law and Practice Contributed by: Sam Dawson, Peter Sherwood and Denis Olarou, Carey Olsen
Appeal The Cayman Islands Court of Appeal hears appeals from the Grand Court. Unlike the Grand Court, which sits throughout the year (except during summer and Christmas breaks when only urgent business is heard), the Court of Appeal generally sits three sessions of three weeks, approximately in April, September, and November each year, although it is possible, in certain limited circumstances and where practicable and nec- essary in the interests of justice, for parties to apply for a special sitting. All judges of the Court of Appeal have previously held high judicial office for many years in the Cayman Islands, England, or elsewhere in the Commonwealth. Appeals from the Cayman Islands Court of Appeal are heard by the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in London. 1.3 Court Filings and Proceedings All originating process documents filed with the Grand Court – such as writs, originating summonses, origi- nating motions and petitions – are placed on a public register. Other documents filed by the parties in court proceed- ings – such as summonses, pleadings, affidavits, wit- ness statements, and skeleton arguments – are placed on the court file relating to the relevant proceeding. This file is not open to public inspection by default. However, any member of the public may apply to the court for permission to inspect or take a copy of any document on the court file. A party to proceedings may apply to the court for an order that any document or part thereof filed with the court should be sealed from the public. Such sealing orders are not made lightly and require proper justi- fication. However, in appropriate circumstances, the court can and does seal sensitive documents, and the court is highly experienced in dealing with sealing applications. Insolvency Proceedings In respect of documents filed with the court in insol- vency proceedings, the default position is that, in
matters such as affiliation, maintenance and domestic violence applications. However, the principal court of first instance for all civil matters is the Grand Court, which also hears appeals from the Summary Court and certain quasi-judicial tribunals. The Grand Court’s civil case load is broadly divided between the Civil Division, the Family Division, the Admiralty Division, and the Financial Services Division. The overwhelming majority of litigation concerned with international financial services takes place in the specialist Financial Services Division. Among other things, the Financial Services Division is the manda- tory division for: • proceedings relating to Cayman Islands investment funds; • most trust proceedings; • certain actions under the Companies Act (including all winding-up proceedings); • all proceedings to enforce foreign judgments and arbitral awards; and • most actions for breach of contract or duty by or against a professional services provider. A particular feature of proceedings in the Financial Services Division of the Grand Court is that, ordinarily, the judge who is assigned to a matter at the outset remains assigned to it all the way until trial. Therefore, the same judge will hear all the interlocutory applica- tions and will preside over the trial. This facilitates a high level of familiarity with the case. Judges of the Grand Court are appointed from amongst individuals who must have the same qualifi- cations as are required for appointment to the English High Court of Justice or courts of equivalent jurisdic- tion throughout the Commonwealth. They are emi- nently qualified and, in the Financial Services Division, possess extensive experience in financial services, corporate, and insolvency disputes. There is no one-size-fits-all timeframe for proceedings. Everything hinges on the complexity of the issues and various other factors. Please see 7.8 General Time- frames for Proceedings for an in-depth discussion of timeframes.
170 CHAMBERS.COM
Powered by FlippingBook