The Laws of Jamaica

Jamaica has a long legislative tradition that has stretched from colonial times through to the

post-independence era. In fact, the laws that presently govern the state and citizenry of this island

nation are an eclectic mix that has arisen out of legislation passed or promulgated both before and

since 1962, when Jamaica joined the ranks of other independent nations that were previously

colonies of the former British Empire.

The Laws of Jamaica (otherwise referred to as Acts or Statutes) were, in modern times, first revised

in 1938 and again in 1953. Since 1953, during the pre and post-Independence periods, the volume of

Legislation enacted by parliament made a further revision imperative. Accordingly, legislation was

enacted - the Law Revision Act, 1969 - which, in addition to laying out the framework for how the

revision of laws is to be carried out, as well as establishing the role of the Law Revision

Commissioners in the carrying out of this task, paved the way for the first (and, to date, only)

wholesale revision exercise involving the laws of independent Jamaica.

The 'Revised Laws'

Law Revision is a process whereby the laws applicable to a region, area or specific subject matter are

reviewed to determine the extent to which changes have been made over a particular period, and

how best to incorporate or consolidate those changes into a comprehensive publication, i.e. a set of

volumes that will reflect the law in terms of being accurate, current and timely.

Accordingly, the Revised Laws of Jamaica (Statutes) were published in 1974 and included all Acts, or

Statutes, that were 'in force' on December 31, 1973. Out of this process, most of the existing primary

legislation was organized into twenty-nine (29) Volumes; included therein are the various

enactments (Acts) of the Jamaican Parliament (Volumes I to XXVII), as well as the Jamaica

Constitution and the Jamaica Independence Act (Volume XXIX).

As a consequence of the revision of the Statutes, Subsidiary (or Secondary) Legislation spanning the

years 1800 - 1975 was, for the first time, also revised and incorporated into nine Volumes. These
Volumes were published in 1976 and are known as “The Revised Laws of Jamaica (Subsidiary

Legislation)”. Currently, the number of Volumes stands at eighteen (18).

Since 1974 there has been a yearly revision exercise that keeps these Revised Laws - Statutes and

Subsidiary Legislation - updated and current. The Law Revision Act currently prescribes the 31st day

of December of each year as being the 'cut-off' date for a year's revision, whereby all new legislation

produced and 'in force' (i.e., operational) at that date is account for in the revision exercise for the

year. As such, changes to the pages of the Revised Statutes and the Revised Subsidiary Legislation

are identified and effected, and the updated pages for the specified year are prepared for publication.