Zaila McCalla

Zaila Rowena McCalla, O.J. (née Morris; born 31 January 1948) is a Jamaican judge. Between 2007 and 2018, she was the Chief Justice of Jamaica.[1][2]

The Honourable

Zaila McCalla

OJ
Chief Justice of Jamaica
In office
27 June 2007 – 01 February 2018
Preceded byLensley Wolfe
Succeeded byBryan Sykes
Personal details
Born
Zaila Rowena Morris

(1948-01-31) 31 January 1948
Westmoreland, Jamaica
Alma materUniversity of the West Indies
AwardsOrder of Jamaica (2007)

Early life and education

Zaila Rowena Morris was born on 31 January 1948 in Saint James Parish, Jamaica.[3] She is one of six children of Herbert and Beryl Morris.[4] She was educated at Chantilly All-Age School in Westmoreland, and at Montego Bay High School, an all-girls secondary school in Montego Bay.[3] She studied law at the University of the West Indies, graduating with a Bachelor of Laws (LLB Hons) degree.[2] She then attended Norman Manley Law School, where she completed a Legal Education Certificate (LEC).[2][3]


McCalla was called to the bar on 27 September 1976.[1] She served as a Deputy Clerk of Court from October 1976 to November 1977, and as a Clerk of Court from November 1977 to July 1980.[1] On 1 July 1980, she joined the Department of Public Prosecutions as a Crown Counsel.[1][3] In 1985, she served as acting Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions.[2]

Judiciary

In August 1985, McCalla was appointed a Resident Magistrate.[1][3] She was promoted to Senior Resident Magistrate in 1996.[2] From 1993 to 1996, she was also an acting Master in Chambers of the Supreme Court.[2][3] In August 1996, she became a Master in Chambers, serving from 1996 to 1997.[1][2]

On 7 July 1997, McCalla was appointed a Puisne Judge of the Supreme Court.[1][3] She stood down from that appointment on 10 April 2006, when she was appointed a Judge of Appeal.[1] In 2006, she was also an Acting Judge of the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands.[2]

On 27 June 2007, McCalla was appointed the Chief Justice of Jamaica. As such, she is Jamaica's most senior judge and head of its judiciary.[3] She is the first woman to hold that appointment.[1]

Personal life

McCalla has been married twice. She was first married to Adolph Holness but their marriage was later dissolved.[2] In 1981, she married William McCalla.[2] William is an Attorney-at-Law.[3] She has three children; two sons and one daughter.[2]

McCalla is an Anglican and attends the Church of St. Margaret, Liguanea, an Anglo-Catholic parish.[2][4] On 1 July 2014, she was appointed the Chancellor of the Diocese of Jamaica and the Cayman Islands. In that role, she advises the bishop and the Diocese on matters of Canon Law.[5]

Honours

In 2007, McCalla was awarded the Order of Jamaica (OJ), and is therefore styled The Honourable.[4] On 9 February 2016, she was made an Honorary Bencher of the Middle Temple, one of the English Inns of Court.[6][7]

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References
  1. "The Chief Justice". The Supreme Court. Government of Jamaica. Retrieved 2 February 2016.
  2. "McCALLA, Hon. Zaila Rowena". Who's Who 2016. Oxford University Press. November 2015. Retrieved 2 February 2016.
  3. "The Hon. Zaila McCalla" (PDF). National Library of Jamaica (pdf). Retrieved 2 February 2016.
  4. "Justice Zaila McCalla Is New Chancellor". Diocese of Jamaica and the Cayman Islands. 14 July 2014. Retrieved 2 February 2016.
  5. "Chief Justice Zaila McCalla Appointed Chancellor of The Anglican Diocese". The Supreme Court. Government of Jamaica. Retrieved 2 February 2016.
  6. "Chief Justice To Be Honourary Bencher Of Middle Temple Inn, London". Jamaican Information Service. 11 February 2016. Retrieved 15 February 2016.
  7. "The Honourable Chief Justice Zaila McCalla". Masters of the Bench. The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple. Retrieved 15 February 2016.

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