Issue Brief

On October 10, the Parliament of St. Maarten formally received the draft timeshare legislation prepared by the St. Maarten Timeshare Association (SMTA) / ARDA legislation committee in conjunction with Judge Jan de Boer of the St. Maarten Common Court of Justice. Judge de Boer sent the draft legislation to Parliament and to the Minister of Justice.

Impact

St. Maarten has had some limited timeshare consumer legislation in place since 2003. However, St. Maarten elected officials called for the well-respected legal scholar, Judge de Boer to make improvements and updates to the current timeshare law in response to the short-lived closing of the Simpson Bay Resort and Marina and the Villas at Simpson Bay Resort and Marina in St. Maarten, formerly known as Pelican Resort Club and Pelican Marina Residences. 

Position/Call to Action

In September of 2011, the SMTA formed a joint committee with ARDA-Caribbean to offer a comprehensive and credible timeshare legislative act. The committee proposed a draft bill to Judge de Boer in May of 2012. After a period of careful review and some minor revision the legislation was officially forwarded to the St. Maarten Government in September 2012. 

Issue Updates

The bill will be reviewed by Parliament during this year’s legislative session, which started in September. Alerts will be sent out for any updates that become available.