Hernandez appointed chief magistrate as Foldats retires

Chief Magistrate Valdis Foldats, who has served in Cayman’s courts system since 1999, retired on Friday. Angelyn Hernandez has been appointed as his successor.

In an emotional farewell ceremony in Courtroom 2 on Friday, colleagues, family, friends and even former defendants gathered to pay tribute to Foldats, who was appointed as chief magistrate in 2021.

Chief Justice Margaret Ramsay-Hale and Foldats sat before the packed courtroom, and passed a box of tissues back and forth between them. As she kicked off the speeches, the chief justice remarked, “On our way here in the car, we were wondering which one of us would cry most.”

Foldats did.

He grabbed tissues and dabbed his eyes throughout the several speeches made by the most senior people across Cayman’s judicial and legal sector, who described him as being filled with integrity, humanity and a profound sense of justice.

These sentiments, however, were perhaps brought home the strongest by a man who had appeared before Foldats in Drug Court many times, and who credited the chief magistrate’s belief in him as the driving factor in getting him clean and now living a drug-free life.

He told Foldats, “I know through the times I’ve been through Drug Court and failed, you never gave up on me. It was as if you saw something in me that I did not see in myself.”

He said he had struggled with self-esteem issues, but that Foldats had helped him believe in himself, and he now has a job and a relationship with his children, as well as the strength and mental clarity to keep away from drugs, even in times of stress and upsets.

That led to a standing ovation in the courtroom, and a request by Foldats to give him another round of applause “as we do in Drug Court”.

Welcoming new chief magistrate

In a statement issued as part of an official announcement of Hernandez’s appointment, Foldats commended his successor, saying he has full confidence in her, and added, “Her integrity, expertise, and commitment to our judicial system are unmatched; it has been a pleasure being Ms. Hernandez’s colleague over the years.”

Hernandez has been a full-time magistrate since 2018, after acting in the part since 2014. She was admitted to the Cayman Islands Bar in 1992. She was crown counsel in the Attorney General’s Chambers, and also had a successful career at the private bar, first as a member of Quin and Hampson, of which she became managing partner until it was acquired by Mourant.

She then ran her own practice before accepting an invitation to sit as a magistrate, a role in which she always seeks, she said in the statement, to “temper justice with mercy while upholding the law”.

Specialist courts

Cayman’s specialist courts – the Drug Court, Domestic Violence Court and Mental Health Court – were set up by Ramsay-Hale. In her speech at Foldats’ retirement ceremony on Friday, she said she had feared that these courts would “lose momentum” after she left Cayman in 2011 to work in Turks and Caicos.

“I can only say how grateful I was every year I returned to these islands to know that, under Mr. Foldats’ stewardship, the courts grew and continued to improve in the way that delivered services to those defendants who are grappling with issues that are beyond the traditional scope of justice.

“Through these specialist courts, Mr. Foldats has continued to address critical human issues, such as mental health and drug addiction.”

She added that his work across the entire Summary Court system over the years was admired by all.

“As we express our gratitude today for his legal acumen, his integrity, and for the compassion that defined his tenure, I am glad that we are all able to be here to celebrate his legacy,” she said. “This is an individual who, through his service, has fortified the foundations of a more just and empathetic legal system.”

Foldats has worked in Cayman’s courts since 1999. He initially held the position of senior deputy clerk and registrar of appeal before being appointed clerk of court, a position he held for 12 years. In 2011, he was appointed as a magistrate, and became chief magistrate in February 2021.

Holistic approach

Attorney General Samuel Bulgin described Foldats as being able to ensure that “the law can work for the people in the manner intended to serve them”.

He said Foldats had always advocated for a “holistic approach to justice”, leading him to foster relations with the various government agencies that support the courts, such as the Department of Children and Family Services, the Department of Counselling Services and the Department of Community Rehabilitation Services.

Director of Public Prosecutions Simon Davis said Foldats’ three-year stint as chief magistrate had been enough time for him to leave an indelible mark on the judiciary.

“Beyond his … integrity, patience and fairness is his remarkable ability to find time to chat,” he said. “He is happy talking to anyone, whether it be fellow judges, court staff, counsel, defendants, witnesses or members of the public… He has a great interest in his fellow human beings.”

He added that Foldats, whom he described as a private man who kept out of the limelight, “tempered his justice with compassion, leaving a lasting impact on the legal community and those who have stood before him”.

Richard Barton, president of the Cayman Islands Legal Practitioners Association, commended Foldats’ diligence in following through on cases before him in the specialised courts, where, he said, “he is in the business of practising justice and not judgement”.

“To say that his retirement is a tremendous loss to the judiciary and to the legal profession overall is an enormous understatement,” he said.

Also among the speakers was Neil Sharkey, chief justice of Nunavut in northern Canada, who paid tribute to his old friend Foldats, which whom he’d worked as a fellow criminal defence attorney in Canada in the 1980s and 1990s.

In his parting words, Foldats spent much time thanking the individuals and departments within and outside the court system that supported it and enabled it to operate, calling out names in court of the many people who had shown up to bid farewell to him.