The Chief Justice, The Hon. Justice Margaret Ramsay Hale, BSc (Econ)(LSE), LLB (UWI)

The Chief Justice of the Cayman Islands, The Hon. Justice Margaret Ramsay Hale, is a distinguished legal professional with Cayman, Jamaican, British and Turks and Caicos nationality. Educated at LSE and UWI, she was called to the Bar of England & Wales at Gray’s Inn in 1988 and to the Bars of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court and Turks and Caicos Islands in 2001. Her career spans private practice, Crown Counsel, and judicial roles across Jamaica, the Cayman Islands, and Turks and Caicos. Notably, she served as Chief Magistrate of the Cayman Islands, Chief Justice of the Turks and Caicos Islands, and is currently a sitting Judge of the Grand Court in addition to being the Chief Justice of the Cayman Islands.

Justice Ramsay Hale has also contributed to legal education as a lecturer and actively participated in Commonwealth judicial training and development programs. Her leadership roles include Vice President for the Caribbean Region and Council Member of the Commonwealth Magistrates and Judges Association. She has been involved with the National Drug Council and chaired Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Cayman Islands. An Honorary Bencher of Gray’s Inn, she has frequently spoken on judiciary independence at international conferences.

• Called to the Bar of Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (St Vincent and the Grenadines), 2001
• Called to the Bar of Turks and Caicos Islands, 2001
• Called to the Bar of England & Wales at Grays Inn, 1988
• Bar Finals – Inns of Court School of Law, 1988
• LLB (Hons), 1987
• Called to the Bar of Turks and Caicos Islands, 2001

• Private practice 1991-1994, appearing as an advocate in a wide range of criminal and civil matters at all levels of the Court
• Crown Counsel, Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, 1994 – 1995
• Judge, St. James Family Court, Jamaica (and later, the Family Courts of Hanover and Westmoreland) 1995 – 1997
• Resident Magistrate for St. James, Jamaica, 1998
• Magistrate, Summary Court, Cayman Islands, 1998 – 2008
• Acting Judge of the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands, 2006
• Chief Magistrate of the Cayman Islands, 2008 – 2011
• Judge of the Supreme Court, Turks and Caicos Islands, 2011 – 2014
• Appointed to the Panel of Acting Judges of the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands, 2013
• Chief Justice of the Turks and Caicos Islands, 2014 – 2020
• Judge of the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands from 2020
• Honorary Bencher, Hon. Society of Gray’s Inn

• Part-Time Lecturer in criminal law, Cayman Islands Law School (now Truman Bodden Law School) 2000 to 2010
• Guest Lecturer in criminal law, International College of the Cayman Islands, 2008 and 2009
• Session leader, regional training workshops on criminal procedure reform, domestic violence and special measures for vulnerable witnesses under the aegis of the Commonwealth Secretariat, 2011 – 2016
• Participant, consultative seminars on the development of a model law on Judicial Service Commissions led by the Commonwealth Secretariat, Wellington, NZ and the Cayman Islands, 2015
• Keynote Speaker and panel presenter on issues bearing on the independence of the Judiciary, Commonwealth Magistrates and Judges Association conferences, 2015 – 2019

• Vice President for the Caribbean Region, Commonwealth Magistrate and Judges Association 2012- 2015
• Council Member, Commonwealth Magistrates and Judges Association (CMJA) 2009 -2012
• Member, National Drug Council of the Cayman Islands, 2001 – 2006, 2010 – 2011
• Chair, Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Cayman Islands, 2000 – 2010