Government slapped with $4.4m lawsuit over land seized to build Ocho Rios bypass
Published:Saturday | October 11, 2025 | 12:09 AMTanesha Mundle/Staff Reporter
After more than three decades of waiting in vain, two landowners from St Ann have taken the Government to court, demanding US$4.4 million plus interest in compensation for a portion of land reportedly seized by the state to build the Ocho Rios bypass.
The two claimants, who are also seeking damages for constitutional breaches, want an order of imprisonment for the minister of finance if there is no order for payment.
David Rance and Cargill Brown, both retirees residing in Cardiff Hall, Runaway Bay, filed a constitutional motion in the Supreme Court’s Civil Division on July 10, accusing the NWA of unlawfully acquiring 2.21 acres of their jointly owned 8-acre property in the early 1990s – and failing to offer any compensation to this day.
The claim, brought against the National Works Agency (NWA) (first defendant), the minister of finance (second defendant), and the attorney general of Jamaica (third defendant), seeks a declaration that the Government’s failure to compensate the claimants is a breach of their constitutional rights under Section 15(1) of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
They are also seeking an order compelling the state to pay US$4.4 million (plus interest), representing the current value of the land, as well as costs.
Brown, in his affidavit filed on behalf of both himself and his co-claimant, contends that the NWA – formerly the Ministry of Works – began construction of the Ocho Rios bypass shortly after they purchased the land in August 1981 from Ernest Smith. During construction, 2.21 acres of the property were acquired, but no efforts were made to negotiate or offer payment.
SEEKING REDRESS
Despite the land being taken for public use, the claimants state that they continued to pay property taxes on the entire 8 acres for decades, receiving only a partial refund from the Tax Administration Jamaica in May 2025.
They shared that a June 2025 letter was sent by their attorney, Hugh Wildman, to NWA CEO Everton Hunter, in which they outlined the longstanding failure to pay compensation and called attention to the unconstitutionality of the situation. The letter reportedly received no response.
The men further argued that they exhausted all available avenues and are now left with no choice but to seek redress through the courts.
“The claimants are of the view that only justiciable intervention will compel the defendants to honour their obligations under the Constitution of Jamaica and have the defendants pay for the lands acquired for over 35 years,” Brown said in the affidavit.
A June 2025 valuation report prepared by Don Juan Enterprises, registered land valuators, assessed the present-day market value of the 2.21 acres at US$4.44 million.
The claimants said they have been advised by their attorney that the Constitution requires prompt and adequate compensation when land is acquired for public purposes, and that the delay constitutes a serious and ongoing violation of their rights.
They further state that the delay in filing legal action stemmed from having to first resolve various title issues connected to the land – issues which have since been settled.
The Government is yet to respond to the claim.