U.S. Investor Sues Tourism Agencies, Offices in Jamaica

An American investor has filed a multimillion-dollar lawsuit against the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB), the Tourism Product Development Company (TPDCo) and the attorney general for damages amounting to $3 million.

Gregory Naldrett, operator of River Walk Limited - parent company of Mayfield Falls - said he was suing the government-run entities after all attempts by him and his lawyer Nigel Jones to reach an amicable solution since 1999 had failed.

The lawsuit follows a long-running dispute between Naldrett and Sarah Willis, who has been operating the Mayfields Fall and Mineral Spring adjacent to Naldrett’s attraction, located at the border of Westmoreland and Hanover.

Naldrett claims that having a license to operate gives him the legal exclusive right to operate tours on the river, adding that the tourism authorities erred in granting another license to Sarah Willis to operate the same business, on a neighboring river, for six years. That license has expired, but Willis is still operating.

Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett said he was not aware that the JTB was being sued. He promised to check into the matter and respond, but up to press time, he had not returned calls.