A preliminary date has been set for the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in the UK to hear arguments on Jamaica’s reparation petition.

Culture Minister, Olivia Grange, gave the update in a statement on Thursday.

According to Minister Grange, the hearing date has been tentatively set for March 8, 2027.

Minister Grange says information from the Registrar of the Privy Council indicates that the respondent to the petition, the UK government, had been given a deadline of November 20, 2026, to file its case.

Jamaica filed its petition to King Charles on September 7.

The petition requested that he refer certain points of real importance about enslavement to the Privy Council for its determination.

This includes whether the capture, transport and enslavement of Africans in Jamaica was ever legal under English law, whether it was a breach of International Law and whether the UK owes the people of Jamaica a reparatory remedy.