The Judicial Service Commission (JSC) has appointed five legal professionals as Commissioners of Title to serve in the Land Court, with the oath of office to be administered today.
Those appointed are Deputy Registrar Alicia Lowenfield, Magistrates Annette Singh, Alisha George and Shivani Lalaram, and attorney-at-law Utieka John.
According to the JSC, Prime Minister Mark Phillips will administer the oath of office on behalf of President Irfaan Ali.
The commission said the appointments are aimed at strengthening the work of the Land Court, which hears applications relating to land ownership and determines title to property.
In announcing the appointments, the JSC outlined the professional backgrounds of the appointees.
Magistrate Singh graduated from the University of Guyana with a Bachelor of Laws degree in 2006 and obtained her Legal Education Certificate from the Hugh Wooding Law School in 2009. Following her admission to the Bar, she served as a State Counsel and later Senior Legal Adviser in the Chambers of the Attorney General before being appointed a magistrate in 2014. She has since served in several magisterial districts.
Lowenfield obtained a Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of Guyana in 2004 and a Legal Education Certificate from the Hugh Wooding Law School in 2006. She was admitted to the Guyana Bar in 2006 and to the Trinidad and Tobago Bar in 2009. She began her career as a State Counsel in the Chambers of the Attorney General before serving as a registered associate attorney in The Bahamas and later as a Judicial Research Counsel in the Judiciary of Trinidad and Tobago for six years. She returned to Guyana in 2016 as Deputy Registrar of the Supreme Court of Judicature, a post she currently holds.
Magistrate George graduated from the University of Guyana with a Bachelor of Laws degree in 2007 and received her Legal Education Certificate from the Hugh Wooding Law School in 2009. She also earned a Master’s degree in Natural Resources Management in 2025. Before her appointment to the Magistracy in 2014, she served as Head of the Regulatory Department at Guyana Power and Light Inc. and as a State Counsel in the Chambers of the Attorney General.
John obtained a Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of Guyana in 2014 and a Legal Education Certificate from the Hugh Wooding Law School in 2016. She later completed a Master of Laws degree in Corporate and Commercial Law in 2024. She served as a State Counsel in the Chambers of the Attorney General from 2016 to 2019 before joining the Guyana Lands and Surveys Commission as Senior Legal Adviser. Since 2021, she has served as the commission’s Corporate Secretary and Legal Counsel.
Magistrate Lalaram earned a Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of Guyana in 2016 and a Legal Education Certificate from the Hugh Wooding Law School in 2018. After a period in private practice, she was appointed a magistrate in February 2024 and has presided in courts in Georgetown and Berbice. The JSC said she played an integral role in establishing Guyana’s Mental Health Court and has also presided in the Drug Treatment Court.
The commission noted that all five appointees have served in various capacities within the legal profession and judiciary, bringing experience in civil, criminal and administrative law to their new roles.
Commissioners of Title are responsible for adjudicating applications for declarations of title under Guyana’s land registration system. Their duties include examining documentary evidence, hearing witnesses where necessary and determining whether applicants have established lawful ownership of land before making recommendations or issuing decisions in accordance with the law.
The JSC said the appointments form part of ongoing efforts to improve the administration of justice and the disposal of matters before the Land Court.
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