While the last few decades have seen a period of high debt and low growth, Jamaica is currently experiencing a period of relative economic stability following an extensive program of economic reforms. The Jamaican government has also recently approved the Companies (Amendment) Act 2023, which allows Jamaica to comply with international obligations relating to anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism controls.

The country’s economy relies heavily on the tourism industry with over 30% of its GDP and a third of the jobs in the country stemming from the tourism sector and the related service industries. Tourism has played a notable part in the country’s post-covid recovery, with the jurisdiction seeing a spike in visitors in 2023 thanks to the return of cruise trips and the easing of pandemic restrictions.

Beyond tourism, the Jamaican economy also benefits from a small but active mining industry, which places Jamaica as a leading global producer of bauxite and aluminium resources, and also remains a key agriculture base in the Caribbean with sugarcane the primary component of the country’s agricultural exports.

For the country’s legal market, Jamaica is home to a broad swathe of full-service law firms, with DunnCox, Hart Muirhead Fatta, Myers, Fletcher & Gordon, Livingston, Alexander & Levy and Patterson Mair Hamilton standing out in the jurisdiction. The jurisdiction also has several boutique offerings including Foga Daley – Attorneys-at-Law, which is a notable name for intellectual property and communications law advice; and Hylton Powell and Nunes, Scholefield, DeLeon & Co, which are both highlighted for their litigation expertise. The country is also home to Jamaican offices of firms with broader Caribbean office networks, including Dentons Delany and Lex Caribbean.