About
At Lival, we are enthusiastic about efficiently achieving our client’s objectives through our solid, inventive and diverse team of Attorneys. We are in tune to the needs of our clients and are focused on providing prompt and practical solutions, always through an in depth consideration and analysis of the law.
As the oldest law firm in Jamaica (Est. 1911), Lival has a rich history and has been closely aligned to legal developments in Jamaica for over 100 years. Against this background, we have tremendous experience, knowledge and expertise in numerous areas of the law enabling us to provide a wide range of legal services to our clients.
Our firm has a wealth of experience acting for local corporations, multinational corporations, individuals and government entities and is cognizant of the nuances of each. We also understand the need for flexibility and adaptability in the ever changing global landscape.
Our team is capable, energetic and available to provide legal solutions tailored to you. Please see our Practice Areas and Attorneys for more details, and feel free to Contact Us for further information.
Also take a look at our History which contains our founding and past partners.
History
On the 20th of February 1911, Kingston solicitor, Noel Brooks Livingston (later Sir) advised his clients that I have this day admitted Harold Vincent Alexander of Kingston, solicitor, into partnership with me. The name of the firm will be Livingston & Alexander.
The firm underwent a name change in 1915 when Mervyn T. King, a newly admitted solicitor, joined the team and they became known as Livingston, Alexander & King. The partnership was dissolved the following year by mutual consent and Livingston & Alexander continued to practise under their old name.
Another young man, Aston Theodore Ivanhoe Levy, joined Livingston & Alexander as an articled clerk in 1922. Once Levy qualified as a solicitor, he remained with the firm and became a well known figure in the field of trademark legislation and patent law. When he was made a partner in 1945, the firm changed its name to Livingston, Alexander & Levy.
Throughout that era, there were two separate and distinct branches of the legal profession - solicitors and barristers. All this changed in 1972 when the professions were fused and lawyers became known as attorneys-at-law. That year, Livingston, Alexander & Levy enlarged the scope of its practice by inviting one of the region's leading Queen's Counsel, the Hon. Roald N.A. Henriques, to become a partner and in the ensuing years the firm established a formidable litigation department.
As a result of the political, social and economic upheavals of the 1970s, Jamaica experienced the mass migration of some of its most talented citizens. Between 1975-77, Livingston, Alexander & Levy lost no less than twelve attorneys-at-law, eight of whom were partners. Could the firm continue with its legal complement so substantially diminished? In answer there was a merger in 1976 with A.E. Brandon & Company and Douglas Ian Brandon and Cecil B. Lopez came on board as partners. Another merger took place in 1979 with Hanna, Cooper and Associates resulting in Paul Cooper being made a partner.
Founding Partners
Noel B. Livingston
Harold V. Alexander
