Alternative Dispute Resolution In The Cayman Islands
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The Cayman Islands are a leading financial centre with an established professional infrastructure. There are over 450 licensed banks and trust companies regulated to the standards of the Basle Convention holding over US$600 billion in deposits and inter bank bookings. Other strengths of the jurisdiction lie in capital markets, asset financing, mutual funds, venture capital, captive insurance (which has a population approaching 500), ship registration and fiduciary services. The Cayman Islands remain a British Overseas Territory with no desire for independence. Their financial prominence is founded on a common law legal system, modern legislation, a stable political and economic environment with no direct taxation or exchange controls and no restrictions on foreign ownership of land. The development of the Cayman Islands has been aided by their proximity to the United States, infrastructure and efficient communications. THE LEGAL SYSTEM AND ADR The substantive law of the Cayman Islands is based on English common law with the addition of local statutes which have in many respects changed and modernised the common law. The Cayman Islands have an excellent legal system, currently being upgraded to meet the demands of the financial industry. Although historically the Cayman Islands have not been an important centre for the resolution of international commercial disputes by way of alternative means of dispute resolution, the trend is changing rapidly. Cayman law has evolved considerably in recent years in order to meet the changing needs of the international business community which has led to an increasing use of alternative means of dispute resolution. “ADR” is now understood to include both binding (eg. arbitration) and non-binding (eg. mediation) methods of dispute resolution, although traditionally there was a more marked distinction in the definition separating arbitration from non-binding means of dispute resolution. Arbitration1 is the most popular means of ADR in the Cayman Islands because it is a means of securing a binding decision enforceable in the courts against the losing party Source : accessmylibrary.com |