Political Structure

The Cayman Islands are a British colony and therefore the United Kingdom Parliament at Westminster retains the right to implement new laws. The islands have a Governor who is appointed by the Queen who heads the Cayman Islands Government and has responsibility for the civil service, defence, law and order and external affairs. There is a Legislative Assembly consisting of 12 elected members plus the Financial Secretary, the Attorney General and the Administrative Secretary, which may make laws with the consent of the Crown. An Executive Council consists of three official members appointed by te Governor and five members elected by the Legislative Assembly, formulates policy and advises the Governor.

The principal type of law of the Cayman Islands is Common Law based on English Common Law. The Company Law of the Cayman Islands is based on the English Companies Act of 1948 and can be found in the Cayman Islands Companies Law of 1960. as amended.

 Our latest offshore news
Offshore Incorporation forum launched
30/09/2006
Welcome to join our discussions
on Offshore Companies, Incorporations,
Jurisdictions, etc..
Learn more
01/12/2007
US journalist John Fund has recently been invited by CIFSA to comment on US Congressional criticisms of the Cayman Islands and other offshore financial centres.
Learn more
20/11/2007
On November 16, the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority celebrated its 10-year anniversary.
Learn more
10/11/2007
Two legal giants, Walkers of the Cayman Islands and Mourant du Feu & Jeune are engaged in merger talks, which could lead to the creation of the world's biggest offshore law firm.
Learn more
17/10/2007
CIFSA has welcomed changes to the insolvency legislation in the Cayman Islands that will soon be introduced. The changes include the licensing of practitioners and measures to help with cross-border insolvencies.
Learn more
28/09/2007
The Board of CIMA has approved the implementation of the new Basel II framework, which will be implemented in Cayman between 2010 and 2012.
Learn more
09/09/2007
Financial Secretary Kenneth Jefferson has told lawmakers that Cayman economy strengthens as in 2006 the jurisdiction maintained its international ranking of 6th place for total banking assets held by it, and the growth of the Cayman economy outpaced the growth of the United States.
Learn more
05/09/2007
On August 31, 2007, the Cayman Islands Legislative Assembly passed the Freedom of Information Bill into law. This bill is to become law on January 1, 2009.
Learn more
23/08/2007
CIMA has released the report entitled "Look Forward Report: 2007-08", which describes the Authority's mission, goals and objectives, as well as indicates its strategies, tactics and work projects that will be undertaken during this fiscal year.
Learn more
15/06/2007
Two Cayman government agencies providing assistance to entrepreneurs and small business owners - the Cayman Islands Investment Bureau (CIIB) and the Cayman Islands Development Bank (CIDB) - are planning to work more closely together.
Learn more
30/05/2007
Financial Secretary Kenneth Jefferson said that in the next financial year (July 2007 - June 2008) strong growth of the Cayman economy is expected to continue. He predicted growth in GDP at 3.5%.
Learn more
13/05/2007
Recently, the Cayman Islands Financial Services Association (CIFSA), launched 4 years ago, reflected on its achievements in the promotion of an international image of financial services industry in the Cayman Islands.
Learn more
27/04/2007
In accordance with the Global Financial Centres Index (GFCI) provided by the City of London Corporation evaluating the competitiveness of 46 major financial centres located all over the world, the Cayman Islands is among the most competitive financial centres in the world. It has been ranked 16th in the list.
Learn more
19/04/2007
The Universal Postal Union has ranked overnight courier service of the Cayman Islands Postal Service as the 5th best in the world. So, Cayman courier service is among the best in the world, which is very essential for every offshore jurisdiction.
Learn more
02/04/2007
In March, the General Registry of the Cayman Islands Government enhanced Cayman Islands financial services offer by introducing an Arabic language facility. The facility is aimed to enable registration and other certificates to be issued with a company's name not only in English, but also in Arabic.
Learn more
22/03/2007
Cayman Islands-based real estate investor plans to invest $10 billion into the infrastructure of India. The investment will be made by Trikona Capital over the next several years. The company aims to solve the problems of India by being socially conscious.
Learn more
09/03/2007
The Cayman Islands Stock Exchange continues its growth, which was confirmed by Financial Secretary Kenneth Jefferson on March 5, 2007. He announced that the Cayman Islands Stock Exchange continues to be self-sufficient and profitable.
Learn more
03/03/2007
According the Cayman government, the Cayman Islands is going on maintaining its leadership position in international financial services and national economic performance and is moving ahead of its competitors. Cayman's ratings have been raised by an international credit rating agency and an independent provider of economic information, Moody's.
Learn more
16/02/2007
Butterfield Bank announced the record income for the Group for the full year 2006. Its net income reached $134.1 million. Butterfield Bank (Cayman) Limited made a great contribution to the performance of the Group as it has reached a record net income of $53.4 million, which is up 16.5% year on year ($7.6 million).
Learn more
19/01/2007
One of the most important annual conferences, Cayman Business Outlook 2007, took place in Cayman. It offered a glimpse of the Cayman future as it discussed numerous topics including how the US has positioned itself as the world's government in the 21st century and regional immigration trends influencing business.
Learn more
12/01/2007
Deutsche Bank has been awarded as the best private bank in the Cayman Islands in the Euromoney private banking survey 2007. Located in Cayman, Jersey and Guernsey, Deutsche Bank for the first time has been indicated in the top spot of the rating.
Learn more
11/01/2007
Maples and Calder, the offshore law firm, has acted as Cayman Islands counsel to the issuer, ADIB Sukuk Company Ltd. in establishing its USD 5 billion sukuk issuance programme. This is the 1st Islamic-compliant bond to be listed on the London Stock Exchange.
Learn more
23/10/2006
Butterfield Bank (Cayman) Limited announced providing a Gold mortgage as a  Butterfield Lifestyle Mortgages product. A 10% down payment, up to 25 years repayment term, a low interest rate and low bank fee are the conditions set for both existing and new clients.
Learn more
14/08/2006
Jersey has included Cayman Islands into the list of states and territories having an equivalent anti-money laundering legislation.
Learn more
02/06/2006
Government of the Cayman Islands announced the changes in the board of directors of the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority. Dr Christopher Rose and Professor Willian Gilmore were appointed, and Dr Warren Coats was re-appointed for a three-year term.
Learn more