All Justices Of The Peace To Receive New National Seal By March 2026

By March 2026, all Justices of the Peace (JPs) are expected to be in possession of the newly designed seal, which features the word ‘Jamaica’ in place of individual parish names.

This was disclosed by Director of Public Law, Restorative and Preventative Justice in the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, Julia Moncrieffe Wiggan, during an online Justice of the Peace sensitisation session on Thursday (September 25).

“The official seal used to carry the [name of the] parish. [However], since 2021, the Ministry took a decision [that] as all JPs now serve across the island of Jamaica… the seal should represent Jamaica and not the parish, symbolising that you have jurisdiction across the island of Jamaica,” she said.

To strengthen the national presence of JPs, the Government amended the Justices of the Peace (Official Seals) Regulations, 2004, to introduce a new seal design engraved with the word ‘Jamaica’ in place of parish names.

This change allows JPs to perform duties islandwide—excluding those reserved for Lay Magistrates—rather than being limited to their parish of commissioning.

Meanwhile, Ms. Moncrieffe Wiggan, advised that the rollout is being conducted in phases.

“The Ministry of Justice would have advanced its recall and replacement to have all JPs issued with the new design seal,” she informed.

Ms. Moncrieffe Wiggan stated that all parishes, with the exception of Kingston and St. Andrew, should now be in possession of the newly designed JP seals. She further noted that in Kingston and St. Andrew, only JPs commissioned after 2021 would have received the updated seals.

“We are currently making arrangements to have the parishes of Kingston and St. Andrew issued with the new design seals [for all JPs]. We are hoping that by March 2026, we would have completed the recall and replacement so that all JPs will be using the new design seal,” she said.

The Director encouraged JPs outside of Kingston and St. Andrew who have not yet received the new design seals, to contact their respective Custos Rotulorum.