Legal Services Act to Be Fully Commenced 1 January 2026

Commencing the remaining parts of the Legal Services Act, 2020 and its five supporting regulations on 1 January 2026 will result in modern, fit-for-purpose oversight for attorneys-at-law, benefits for Caymanians in the profession, and public revenue streams.

Globally, more than 1,200 attorneys-at-law practice Cayman Islands law today, noted Attorney General the Hon. Samuel Bulgin KC. As such, the Act responds to the annual exponential growth in these numbers, and to the increasing complexity of global financial activity. It also enhances the soundness and breadth of our legal profession.

The Order to commence the LSA and the regulations was approved by Cabinet on 13 November. The legislation is intended to:

• ensure uniform regulation of all attorneys-at-law, whether operating domestically or in the international market;
• strengthen professional standards and ethical compliance, thereby enhancing public confidence in the legal system;
• provide a clearer legislative framework to address challenges in cross-border legal services;
• support Cayman’s global reputation as a well-regulated, credible financial and legal centre; and 
• facilitate greater efficiency and transparency in the administration and oversight of legal services. 

One of the five regulations is The Legal Services (Professional Development) Regulations, 2025. The Attorney General highlighted some of the benefits for Caymanians in these regulations that, subject to specified conditions, require law firms to:

• establish and maintain scholarship programmes for Caymanians;
• offer interviews for articles of clerkship to scholarship students who fulfil the regulation criteria; 
• offer associate positions to articled clerks who successfully complete the articles of clerkship with the firm, and who apply to the firm;
• establish and maintain training programmes for articled clerks;
• assign mentors to newly qualified attorneys-at-law that they employ; and 
• offer overseas employment opportunities to Caymanian attorneys-at-law.

“Commencing the LSA culminates a long journey, spanning more than two decades, to modernise the framework for the practice of law in the Cayman Islands,” the Attorney General said. “And it is a welcome development, as all lawyers will be subject to the same set of rules.”

The remaining four regulations that support the LSA are set out below.

1. The Legal Services (Fees) Regulations, 2025 sets the practicing certificate fee for attorneys-at-law, the annual operational licensing fee, and other administrative fees. They are expected to generate KYD$8.6million in public revenue in 2026.
2. The Legal Services (Recognised Law Entities) Regulations, 2025 lists matters to be considered by the LSC in deciding to recognise a company, partnership or limited liability partnership as a recognised law entity.
3. The Legal Services (Immunity) Regulations, 2025 grants immunity from liability under specific situations to any person to whom the Legal Services Council has delegated its authority, among other provisions.
4. The Legal Services (Savings and Transitional) Regulations, 2025 allows firms that practiced Cayman Islands law immediately before the LSA’s commencement to achieve compliance with the Act within six months from 1 January 2026.

The Attorney General thanked the Cayman Islands Legal Practitioners Association (CILPA) for its input into the LSA. He also thanked successive Governments for their support in progressing the practice of Cayman Islands law.

CILPA President Richard Barton thanked Government for the opportunity to work collaboratively throughout the process.

“We commend the Premier, the Hon. André Ebanks, for his decisive leadership and steadfast commitment to ensure that the Cayman Islands continue to stand with distinction on the global stage; and the Hon. Attorney General for his invaluable role in guiding this legislative transformation,” he said.

“We welcome this milestone with optimism, confidence and a continued commitment to excellence.”

Sidebar: The Legal Services Act, 2020

For more than 50 years the practice of law in the Cayman Islands has been governed by the Legal Practitioners Act (2015 Revision), which originally was enacted in 1969.

Parliament passed The Legal Services Act (LSA) in December 2020, and it was published in the Legislation Gazette on 7 January 2021.

In the LSA, section 1(2) provides for it to come into force on a date appointed by an Order made in Cabinet. It also provides for different provisions of the Act coming into force on different days, and for different purposes.

Accordingly, a Cabinet Order in 2022 commenced the parts of the Act that were necessary for establishing the Legal Services Council (LSC). Once established the LSC worked assiduously to lay the groundwork for the LSA’s full implementation, including conducting stakeholder consultations that resulted in the five sets of regulations.

As an independent body, the LSC is responsible for regulating and supporting high standards across the Cayman Islands’ legal profession. To ensure balanced and accountable oversight, LSC members are representatives from the Cayman Islands Judiciary and the legal profession.

On 13 November this year, Cabinet agreed the Order to publish the five regulations and commence the remaining LSA provisions on 1 January 2026, which will bring the LSA fully into effect.

The LSA’s commencement supports Government’s Broad Outcome 4, on strengthening good governance for more effective government.