The Turks and Caicos Islands Civil Service is pleased to congratulate Ms. Dominique Gardiner on her appointment to the post of Crown Counsel with the Turks and Caicos Islands Government’s Attorney General’s Chambers.

Ms. Gardiner obtained her undergraduate degree with honours in Law with Accounting & Finance from the University of Liverpool in June 2016 and in July of 2017 completed the Legal Practice Course along with an MSc in Law and Business from the University of Law in Manchester, United Kingdom.

Commenting on Ms. Gardiner’s appointment Deputy Governor Her Excellency Anya Williams said;  “We are pleased to formally welcome Dominique to the Turks and Caicos Islands Civil Service.  Ms. Gardiner interned with the Attorney General’s Chambers, the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions and the Financial Services Commission during her studies and after completing did a joint pupillage with the Attorney General Chambers and Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions in pursuit of being called to the Turks and Caicos Islands Bar which was accomplished in July 2018.  Ms. Gardiner was temporarily appointed to the post of Crown Counsel prior to her appointment and we are pleased to now have her permanently join our Chambers team.”

In commenting on her appointment Ms. Gardiner said; “The opportunity to serve as Crown Counsel within the Attorney General’s Chambers is one that I am truly grateful for. I am eager to contribute to the Chambers’ efforts of upholding the rule of law in the Turks and Caicos Islands, and to working along with highly skilled, experienced and hard working professionals. My aim going forward is to provide high caliber legal support and representation to the Public Service as I develop in this profession.”

The Hon. Attorney General QC said; “It is a pleasure to welcome Dominique Gardiner into the Civil team in Chambers.  The employment and development of bright young Turks and Caicos Islander attorneys is a core goal of our succession planning. Dominique comes to the post with a stellar academic record and has made an impressive start.  She will add value to the work being done by the civil division and in Chambers generally.  We are very pleased that she has chosen to start her career with us.”

ENDS

The Hon. Attorney General Rhondalee Braithwaite Knowles OBE QC welcomed the return of Principal Crown Counsel, International Mrs. Khalila Astwood Tatem to the Office of the Attorney General on Monday, 1st July 2019 following completion of her Master of Laws degree in International Maritime Law at the IMO International Maritime Law Institute.

The IMO International Maritime Law Institute (IMLI) held its 30th annual Graduation Ceremony on Saturday 15 June 2019 at the Malta Maritime Museum, Vittoriosa. The Ceremony marked the successful completion of an intensive year of studies in all the areas of international maritime law- including the law of the sea, shipping law, marine environmental law, maritime safety and security law and maritime legislation drafting, and a number of workshops and seminars.

During the Graduation Ceremony, Fourty-eight students (from 36 countries) in total graduated from the Institute’s programmes. Thirty-nine students were awarded the Degree of Master of Laws (LL.M.) in International Maritime Law, one student was awarded the Diploma in International Maritime Law and seven students were awarded the Degree of Master of Humanities (M.Hum.) in International Maritime Legislation. One student was awarded the Degree of Magister Juris (M.Jur.) in International Maritime Law in absentia.

Mrs. Tatem commented; “I am proud to be the first Turks and Caicos Islander to have attended the IMO International Maritime Law Institute. A primary goal of IMLI is to provide professionals with training in all aspects of maritime law and to equip them to assist their countries to better implement the IMO instruments. Although the program was very intensive, it was also very rewarding and provided numerous networking opportunities. I am grateful to all who supported, encouraged and in any way assisted me.”

Mrs. Tatem was successful at obtaining a scholarship from the IMO and received funding support from the Deputy Governor’s Office through the Professional Development Fund.

The Hon. Attorney General was delighted to see the ongoing development of Turks and Caicos Islander Attorneys and applauded Mrs. Tatem for having pursued her interest in an area of the law for which there is so little expertise in the Islands and congratulated her for having represented the Turks and Caicos Islands so well and graduating with distinction.

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The Turks and Caicos Islands has released its updated National Anti-Money Laundering and Combating Terrorist Financing and Proliferation Financing Strategy 2021-2023 (“National Strategy 2021-2023“) setting out the main objectives which will be undertaken by the Government in collaboration with other stakeholders in order to improve the TCI’s AML/CFT/CPT regime and ensure that it continues to align with the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) recommendations.

The National Strategy 2021-2023 builds upon the National Strategy 2018 taking into account threats and risks identified in the 2017 National Risk Assessment, the deficiencies noted in the MER and the Anit-Money Laundering Committee's Strategic Plan 2020-2023. The National Strategy 2021-2023 sets out goals which embodies the actions necessary to achieve the Anti-Money Laundering Committee’s strategic priorities. The actions within each goal are assigned to specific agencies to develop and implement with a lead agency being identified in each case.  

The National AML/CFT Strategy is a two-year framework document for use by private and public sector stakeholders to implement effective measures to combat risks to the financial sector.

Announcing the release of the National Strategy 2021-2023, chair of the national Anti-Money Laundering Committee, Attorney General, Hon. Rhondalee Braithwaite Knowles OBE QC said: “The ultimate goal of the Anti-Money Laundering Committee in producing this updated National Strategy is to supplement the Anti-Money Laundering Committee's strategic plan and provide a guide to the stakeholders as they implement the actions required to advance the Turks and Caicos Islands as a secure and well-regulated international financial center which is effective in mitigating against money laundering, terrorist financing and proliferation financing. Through these goals and supporting actions the Anti-Money Laundering Committee will ensure that the measures, systems and processes to combat Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Proliferation Financing are robust and effective and that the legislative and regulatory infrastructure of the Turks and Caicos Islands’ financial services sector is fully implemented..”

For more information on the National Anti-Money Laundering and Combating Terrorist Financing and Proliferation Strategy 2021-2023, please contact the TCI Attorney General Chambers at: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. The Strategy will be available on the websites of the Attorney General’s Chambers www.gov.tc/agc as well as that of the Financial Services Commission www.tcifsc.tc and the Financial Intelligence Agency www.fia.tc.

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