‘The complete woman’

FAMILY and loved ones who assembled for the Mass of Resurrection for Hyacinth Lindsay on Friday, paid their final respects to the legal luminary, nation builder, mother and friend, bestowing on her the title: “The complete woman.” “Our dearest mother, our dearest Hyacinth, our dearest all-round supporter, friend, and cheerleader, you were the complete woman… She was the complete woman. You lived fully, you ran your race, you fought a very good fight, and it is now your time to rest,” said Annaliesa Lindsay, as she delivered her mother’s eulogy at the Church of the Transfiguration in Meadowbrook, St Andrew. Annaliesa described her late mother as a woman of many passions, uniquely gifted, and deeply dedicated to every role she assumed.

Starting out a landmark legal career in Jamaican and Caribbean law, Hyacinth Lindsay was called to the Bar at Lincoln’s Inn, London, in 1971, and later enrolled as an attorney-at-law in 1973 in Jamaica where she began to work with the country’s Office of Parliamentary Counsel. By 1989 she became Jamaica’s first female chief parliamentary counsel, serving until her retirement in 2006. Her professional prowess as a legal expert was also felt across several regional conventions, serving as the Caribbean Community’s (Caricom) legal consultant and member of the Organisation of American States (OAS) Inter-American Juridical Committee.

Hyacinth Lindsay was also a founding member of the Commonwealth Association Legislative Counsel. Additionally, she was a part of the Caricom Inter-Governmental Task Force, which was established to undertake the revision of the Treaty of Chaguaramas. She was also a major contributor to the agreement establishing the Caribbean Court of Justice, serving on various committees, and drafting legislation pertaining to the regional body.

Lindsay also served as the Caribbean representative on the Commonwealth Association of Legislative Counsel for 12 years. Jamaica National Group Chief Executive Officer Earl Jarrett (right) and, Delroy Lindsay former banker and founding co-chairman of the Jamaica Observer during the Mass of Resurrection for the life of his mother Hyacinth Lindsay at the Church of the Transfiguration in Meadowbrook, St Andrew, on Friday. Joseph Wellington Her contributions to the legal fraternity saw significant transformation in legislation, drafting laws around constitutional reform, access to …