Shayanne Hylton

Biography

Shayanne Hylton hails from the city of Montego Bay where she developed not only her academic skills but her passion for advocacy at the Montego Bay High School for girls. In high school, she was appointed as a youth ambassador for the International Women Forum, which opened the door for mentoring and helping other young girls and women at an early age.

Shayanne holds a Bachelor of Laws Degree (Upper Second Class Honours) from the University of the West Indies (UWI). During her time at the UWI, Shayanne served in various leadership capacities both at the faculty and university levels, including UWI Peer Mentor, Student Ambassador of the Vice Chancellor of UWI,  Faculty of Law Third Year Representative, Mary Seacole Hall Leadership Academy Deputy Chair and Honours Society Member for both the Mary Seacole Hall and UWI.

She then matriculated to the Norman Manley Law School (NMLS) in 2019, where she served as the Academic Committee Representative for the 2020/21 academic year. She obtained her Legal Education Certificate in 2021 and graduated as the Class Speaker for the 2020/21 graduating class, and was admitted to the Jamaican Bar in that same year.

Shayanne is also a member of the Jamaican Bar Association, and a member of the Membership and Civil Practice and Procedure Sub-Committees.

When she is not engaged in her legal career, Shayanne dabbles in the creatives, as she enjoys sewing and baking. With the challenges brought by the pandemic, and the misplacement of some of our most vulnerable youth in the education system, she launched an after school homework programme, aimed at providing students between the ages of 8 and 12 with academic guidance and assistance, which has assisted over 15 students! She currently volunteers as an English Tutor with the Adult Learning Centres of Jamaica.

Her areas of interest include, commercial law, family law, constitutional law, judicial review, environmental law, intellectual property law, conveyancing and law of the sea. Since becoming a member during her high school years, Shayanne has lived by the Rotaract motto 'Service above self', as she is passionate about volunteering and mentorship and hopes to inspire her colleagues to do the same.

Educational background

• Legal Education Certificate, Norman Manley Law School (NMLS) 2021.
• LL.B. (Hons), University of the West Indies (UWI)-Mona, 2019.
• Conveyancing Clinic Certificate, NMLS Legal Aid Clinic 2021.
• Intellectual Property Clinic Certificate, NMLS Legal Aid Clinic 2021.

Professional Skills

Career & Experience

• Shayanne has acted as advocate and instructing counsel in civil and commercial litigation matters including recovery of debt claim, defamation matters, judicial review and acquisition of interim injunction in both the Supreme Court and Court of Appeal of Jamaica.
• Shayanne has conducted extensive research on complex commercial matters including those involving financial institution, employment law, and matters concerning our Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedom.
• She has also been instrumental in the firm’s Conveyancing department.

Award & Achievement

• Executive Officer for Advocacy and Policy Research, Jamaica Union of Tertiary Students (2021-23)
• Outstanding Leadership and Community Service Award, NMLS 2021
• Youth Leader of the Opposition, National Youth Parliament of Jamaica 2021-22
• The Norman Manley Memorial Prize, NMLS 2021
• The Raphael Codlin Prize (awarded to the most outstanding Year II student and Class Speaker), NMLS 2021
• The Bruce B Barker memorial prize (awarded to the final year student for best performance in Civil Procedure and Practice), NMLS 2021
• Outstanding Leadership Award, UWI 2018
• Honour Society, UWI 2016-2018