David Elliott Ritch (born 1951) is a Cayman Islands attorney who has done private and governmental work.
David Ritch received his law degree from the University of the West Indies with honours, and was admitted to the bar in 1976 from the Inner Temple, Inns of Court, London, England; in England as Barrister-at-Law and Cayman Islands as Attorney-at-Law. He first worked at the Cayman Islands Courts Office and then moved into the private sector working at law firm Hunter & Hunter. [1]
In 1983, David Ritch founded a private firm, Ritch & Conolly, with stepfather Warren Conolly which at one time became the second-largest Caymanian-owned practice on the island. [2] The firm is rated as one of the top two Caymanian real estate firms by the website Legal500. [3]
He has served as a director of the Caribbean Utilities Company and became the chairman in October 2003. [4] On 19 December 2013, Ritch was appointed non-executive chairman of the CIBC FirstCaribbean International Bank, having been on the bank's board since 2002. [5]
David Ritch has had appointments on numerous Cayman Islands government boards including chairman of the Planning Appeals Tribunal (1987-1989), member of the Cayman Islands Currency Board (1987-1997), Chairman of the Labour Laws Appeals Tribunal (1988-1991), Chairman of the Caymanian Protection Board (1989-1990), Chairman of the Port Authority (1992-2003, chairman of the Trade and Business Licensing Board (2000-2002) and chairman of the Immigration Board (2002-2003). [4] [6] In 2005, he began as chairman of the Work Permit Board and the Immigration Review Team (a Cabinet committee), where he reduced the large backlog of applications and reformed the immigration law. He resigned his chairmanship of the Work Permit Board in April 2007. [7] Ritch was appointed chairman of the Constitutional Commission, a body promoting good governance, for a period of three years. [8]
David Ritch is married with three children and was awarded an OBE in 2003 for public service in the Cayman Islands. [4] He is also a Justice of the Peace in George Town. [9]
The CaymanIslands is a self-governing British Overseas Territory, and the largest by population. The 264-square-kilometre (102-square-mile) territory comprises the three islands of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac and Little Cayman, which are located south of Cuba and north-east of Honduras, between Jamaica and Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula. The capital city is George Town on Grand Cayman, which is the most populous of the three islands.
The Cayman Islands are a British overseas territory located in the Caribbean that have been under various governments since their discovery by Europeans. Christopher Columbus sighted the Cayman Islands on May 10, 1503, and named them Las Tortugas after the numerous sea turtles seen swimming in the surrounding waters. Columbus had found the two smaller sister islands and it was these two islands that he named "Las Tortugas".
This is a demography of the population of the Cayman Islands including population density, ethnicity, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population.
The economy of the Cayman Islands, a British overseas territory located in the western Caribbean Sea, is mainly fueled by the tourism sector and by the financial services sector, together representing 50–60 percent of the country's gross domestic product (GDP). The Cayman Islands Investment Bureau, a government agency, has been established with the mandate of promoting investment and economic development in the territory. Because of the territory's strong economy and it being a popular banking destination for wealthy individuals and businesses, it is often dubbed the ‘financial capital’ of the Caribbean.
William McKeeva Bush, is a Caymanian politician, former Speaker of the Parliament of the Cayman Islands and former Premier of the Cayman Islands. Bush, the former leader of the Cayman Democratic Party, is the elected member for the constituency of West Bay West. He is the territory's longest ever serving political figure with service spanning over 35 years, previously serving his tenth term in the Parliament of the Cayman Islands.
Caymanians are the status holders or born citizens of the Cayman Islands. As a British Overseas Territory, citizens of the Cayman Islands will hold British Overseas Territories Citizenship. There is no record of a native people to the Cayman Islands, such as groups like the Arawak or Carib people who were native to most of the Caribbean; therefore most Caymanians today are of mixed European and African descent, coming from early British settlers and enslaved people from Africa.
Darwin Kurt Tibbetts, OBE is a Caymanian politician and former Leader of Government Business in the Cayman Islands. Tibbetts served as leader of the People's Progressive Movement party from August 2002 – February 2011. Tibbetts served as an elected member for the district of George Town, serving six terms in the Legislative Assembly of the Cayman Islands.
Belonger status is a legal classification normally associated with British Overseas Territories. It refers to people who have close ties to a specific territory, normally by birth or ancestry. The requirements for belonger status, and the rights that it confers, vary from territory to territory.
Truman Murray Bodden, OBE is a former Caymanian politician. An attorney at law by profession, he served as Leader of Government Business from April 1995 to November 2000. He was a member of the Legislative Assembly for George Town. When in government he served in the Ministries of Education, Youth, Finance, Civil Aviation, Employment, Tourism, Environment, Investment and Commerce.
Harney Westwood & Riegels is a global offshore law firm that provides advice on British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Cyprus, Luxembourg, Bermuda and Anguilla law to an international client base that includes law firms, financial institutions, investment funds, and private individuals. They have locations in major financial centers across Europe, Asia, America and Caribbean.
The Hon. William Warren Conolly, OBE, JP was a politician and attorney in the Cayman Islands.
Bodden Town is the former capital of the Cayman Islands and the largest district in the territory. It is situated on a natural harbour and a coral reef. The first settlement was named after a government leader, William Bodden. Once ravaged by pirates, this village is known for its remains of a 4 mi (6 km) wall and cannon. Bodden Town has a population of 14,845. Its top attractions include the Mission House, which features the lifestyle of early Caymanian settlers. Bodden Town is also considered the fastest growing district in the islands in terms of resident population.
LGBTQ+ rights in the Cayman Islands are regarded as some of the most progressive in the Caribbean. While the British territory still has a long way to go, it continues to relax its stance on this subject. Both male and female types of same-sex sexual activity are legal in the Cayman Islands. Same-sex unions became legal in 2020.
Anthony Travers, OBE was the chairman of the Board of Cayman Finance from 2009 to 2011. Travers is also the Chairman of the Cayman Islands Stock Exchange and former Senior Partner and Managing Partner of international law firm Maples and Calder. He has over thirty years experience in all aspects of Cayman Islands law, particularly mutual funds, structured finance, insurance and private client, and has throughout advised Government on the development of Cayman Islands legislation.
The Cayman Islands Society of Professional Accountants (CISPA) is a professional association of accountants in the Cayman Islands, a British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean. CISPA is responsible for licensing accounting practitioners, supports education of accountants and participates in decisions about the financial industry in the offshore financial centre.
Conolly is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:
Cayman Islands English, also called Caymanian English, is an English variety spoken in the Cayman Islands. Its early development was influenced by Early Modern English, Guinea Coast Creole English, and the Igbo and Twi languages of West Africa. More recent influences include Standard English, Jamaican Patois and African-American Vernacular English. It has been described as both a non-creole and a semi-creole, due to its differences from and similarity to Caribbean Creole languages.
Islay Conolly, MBE was a Caymanian teacher and school administrator. Serving as a teacher and principal at various schools on the islands, she became Chief Education Officer in 1970. She was honored by the Caymanian government with the Spirit of Excellence Award during National Heroes Day and was first recipient of the Chamber of Commerce's Lifetime Achievement Award in Education. Conolly was honored as a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 1982 New Year Honours.
Annie Huldah Bodden OBE was a Caymanian civil servant, lawyer, and politician. She was the first woman to serve in the Legislative Assembly of the Cayman Islands, of which she was a member from 1961 to 1964 and from 1965 to 1984.
Same-sex marriage is currently not recognised in the Cayman Islands. The island's statutory law limits marriage to different-sex couples. A lawsuit with the Grand Court successfully challenged this ban in March 2019; however, the Court of Appeal overturned the ruling in November 2019. Same-sex civil partnerships are legal following the enactment of the Civil Partnership Law, 2020 on 4 September 2020.