The Supreme Court has ruled that the three-year extension granted to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Paula Llewellyn in 2020 was legal, and there were no breaches of the Constitution.

The judgment was handed down today, July 31, by Justice Lorna Shelly-Williams following a case brought by Mervin Cameron, who challenged the DPP’s tenure extension in 2020 on the basis that it was not gazetted, and Llewellyn was operating under an illegal extension.

However, Justice Shelly Williams, while delivering the verdict today, said that the extension was gazetted and approved before Llewellyn reached the age of retirement, and there was no breach of the Constitution for the 2020 matter.

The announcement comes amid growing opposition to raising the retirement age of the DPP and Auditor General from 60 to 65, with the option for a further extension to 70 years. But lobby groups Jamaicans For Justice and the Jamaican Bar Association have added their voices to those opposing the move the amend the Constitution to facilitate the extension without consultation with the Opposition.

The three-year extension granted to Llewellyn in 2020 ends this September.