House pauses Mediation Bill debate amid dispute over residency wording

The House of Representatives suspended its review of Jamaica’s Mediation Bill on Wednesday after members could not settle the meaning of key residency terms and Justice Ministry technical officers were not present in the chamber.

Justice Minister Delroy Chuck is guiding the bill through a clause-by-clause examination and put forward two main amendments. One, affecting clause 11, drew no objection: anyone offering mediation services or training as a business without a licence could face a fine of up to $1 million and, if the fine is unpaid, imprisonment for as long as six months.

The sticking point was language describing who qualifies under the bill’s definitions. Chuck favoured replacing a reference to a “habitual” resident with “ordinarily” resident, arguing that “ordinarily” is the clearer and better choice. He noted that the idea of ordinary residence is drawn from tax law and carries a fairly settled meaning, and that most people in Jamaica who would seek mediation are likely to be ordinary residents.

Others pressed for a broader approach. One contribution from the floor asked whether “ordinarily resident” should be used at all if the aim is to make mediation available to people in Jamaica, suggesting that language tied to presence in the country would be wider and more practical. Concerns were raised that ordinary residence could invite jurisdictional challenges and leave out people who are only visiting Jamaica but become involved in non-commercial disputes that mediation might resolve.

Opposition Leader Mark Golding warned that altering the wording would affect the definitions of domestic mediation, international commercial mediation and international settlement agreements, with potentially serious consequences. He urged Chuck not to make the change without proper advice from his technical team.

With those technicians absent, the House paused the clause-by-clause analysis so the Justice Ministry’s technical staff could be consulted before the residency language is settled.