According to Jamaica's General Legal Council's website, fifty-seven attorneys have been disbarred between 1978 and 2018. Below is a breakdown of the numbers: 1978 - 1 1988 - 1 1990 - 1999 - 8 2000-2010 - 27 2010-2017 - 18 2018 - 2 (to date) The majority of these attorneys were disbarred between 2000-2010; the period right after the passing of The Legal Profession (Accounts and Records) Regulations, 1999. The regulations, which are still in force, require attorneys to maintain separate accounts for client funds and provide the GLC with records of their management of client accounts. Between 2010-2017 there was a 33% decline in the number of attorneys disbarred and while will have to wait to see what the next 18 months will bring as the number of disbarred attorneys to date is upsetting, not just for the public but also for attorneys who practice law with integrity. One does not have to read the rulings published by the Disciplinary Committee to know that
Whenever people discover I was a prosecutor, in Jamaica , they tend to ask the same questions: Did you ever prosecute murderers? Have you ever been threatened by a criminal? Weren't you afraid? Did you ever send someone you thought was innocent to jail? Has any criminal ever confessed to you? Have you ever encountered someone you prosecuted out of court? Would you prosecute someone you know? 1. Did you ever prosecute murderers? Yes . Prosecuting murderers is commonplace for Jamaican prosecutors. Within a year (or less) of joining the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions Department, a prosecutor would have prosecuted a few murders. This is primarily because of the high murder rate, an inadequate number of judges, courtrooms and prosecutors in relation to Jamaica's escalating crime rates. The government has, through the years, added a few judges, prosecutors and courtrooms, but the numbers remain inadequate to deal with Jamaica's ever increasing