CATEGORY:COMMENTARY ------------------------ INSIDE GRENADA MONDAY August 20,2007 (Editor's note: The information presented in this article represents the views/ opinions of the writer and not necessarily those of Grenadian Connection). In these tiny-tot tri-Island State of Grenada - we never seem to run out of dramatic headlines and unique breaking news that will take some beating. The members of the legal profession in these Isles are subject to more name-calling and criticisms, than any other profession here at home or in the region. If Lawyers simply go to their offices and attend court on behalf of their clients - and although they can see and hear about wrong-doing in the system, they say and do nothing about it - they are good guys and gals.But once the forward looking and conscious ones, begin to point out the wrongs and in-equalities affecting john public in the system - they become enemies number one. That has been the pattern of behaviour by some Governments over the years, but it has become much worse in recent times - and if the statement by the Special Legal Adviser, Hugh Wildman, is anything to go by then we have now reached rock bottom, or the highest heights. From the press conference held by Minister Gregory Bowen and Hugh Wildman last week - it seems that the case brought against the Minister and the Russians in New York, in which Jack Grynberg of the Oil exploration Company, was claiming that the Defendants had conspired to deprive him of the benefit of the Contract, to go ahead and mine for Oil and Gas in Grenadian waters; and that the Minister had sought to get under the counter payment from him in 1996 to give him the Contract - that part of the case was thrown out by the Court, because after two years it was statute barred, i.e. it was brought beyond the limitation period for bringing such Cases. What the Minister and Wildman did not say, was that the merits of the Case were not touched by the Judge at all. And further more, the Judge dismissed a Motion by Minister Bowen for a protective order denying Grynberg jurisdictional discovery, and granted RSM Corporation permission to file an amended complaint no later than August 24th. So the Case is still alive and the expectation is that Minister Bowen and the Russians will all be back in Court sooner rather than later. But in going to all lengths to try and show that the Case had no merit, over and above the limitation issue, Mr. Wildman came up with a new term of “Political Lawyers”.And the way he described them was quite unique and went beyond anything I had heard in that context before. According to the Special Legal Advisor, those political Lawyers in Grenada have been going to any length - to encourage Lawyers and Litigants in the U.S.A. to bring bogus Cases against the Prime Minister and his deputy. I suppose that in the process those political Lawyers also created Grynberg, and Resteiner, and Howland, and the two Russians - and maybe even stage-managed the meeting at St. Moritz in Switzerland, between the Prime Minister and Resteiner. He did not say so, but I suppose those political Lawyers are also paying those in New York to bring the Cases- because they would not do so for free. If he thinks, or those paymasters who pay his many perks and stipends and what have you, that they are looking for scapegoats to excuse themselves for the Millions they are paying U.S. Lawyers in Court house - then they had better have another serious thought coming. The hell people ketching to make ends meet in these times - while those in control are just doing their own thing, and blaming their failures on others - would not be so easily forgotten or excused in the times ahead. So much time and effort and money are spent on non-essentials, and or the results of very bad decisions, while the important and beneficial things are neglected - that even our long-standing shows and carnival activities this year, were criticised by many visitors and locals as second rate. The proper organisation and basic planning of those shows were absent, and patrons and participants were sitting or standing around for hours waiting for something to happen. Scores of visitors were heard to say they are not coming back next year, and giving Grenada Carnival a miss until things are improved considerably. Even the facilities and conveniences for visitors and tourists, while in St. George’s for the shows and Band parades, were not there although just four months ago all those essentials were in place for Cricket World Cup. And the justification for the big spending on that occasion - was to entice Tourist to come to Grenada after the Cricket over, and on the very first opportunity thereafter almost everything was forgotten. And that was not seen as important by the powers-that-be, just leave the visitors to find makeshift convenience up any alley or wherever - so long as the Foreign Judges were in place, to silence those Calypsonians who were singing lyrics that criticised the politicians, then the policy was successful even though the standard of the art form on show was second rate. Sometimes one is tempted to conclude, that those who follow the above madness in the name of Administration of the Government or an occasion like Carnival - they are purposefully doing crazy things, or not doing obviously sensible things, so as to destroy what we already had for many years and thereby leaving nothing to follow-up on - because they know their days are numbered in control. Whatever it is, and however it eventually plays out in the long run - whoever has to pick up the pieces that would be left behind, after what is taking place in recent times here at home and in our names beyond the seas - the task facing the new-comers would be very daunting - indeed. And as the saga surrounding the Brief Case money for a diplomatic Passport, continues in the New York Court against the Prime Minister and Resteiner, I heard on the news last weekend that the Cheltenham Inquiry into the same matter - which had been adjourned for so very long now after a brief hearing at the Trade Centre - would have been resumed Tuesday 21st August at the same venue. From the little information available, it seemed that what the Commissioner had requested the Attorney General to do about the “Video Tape” was not done, so it would be interesting to hear what the next move would be about the hearing. I am wondering though, which set of Political Lawyers had been so successful in getting the Governor General and or Commissioner Cheltenham to again re-open this matter involving the Prime Minister. The Special Legal Advisor should hold an Inquiry to check the horns on board ship.Whereas in the New York Case, the Prime Minister’s Lawyers filed a very lengthy reply to the claim by Howland, on the 10th August as was previously agreed. The gist of the reply is an application to have the Case against the Prime Minister and his wife thrown out - mainly on the question of jurisdiction. The lawyers for the Mitchells allege that - “this is a bogus Lawsuit brought against the Prime Minister of Grenada and his wife. As a matter of law, it should be dismissed for at least five reasons” - and the reasons were listed. They are claiming head-of-state immunity as an absolute bar to the action against the Prime Minister as well as his Wife; that the Court lacks personal jurisdiction over the Prime Minister and his wife - even though it is alleged that the couple own property in new York and they are Citizens of the U.S.A. They are also claiming that because the alleged payment took place in Switzerland (and or Grenada) the fraudulent transfer of the funds falls under Swiss Law not New York - even though the funds emanated from the U.S.A. And as regards Mrs. Mitchell, she cannot beheld liable by virtue only of being the wife - without having been involved in the alleged transaction between Resteiner and the Prime Minister. None of those issues touch or concern the merit of the Case as such, but if any one is accepted by the Court then the matter could end there - except the issue pertaining to Mrs. Mitchell, which would simply remove her from the Case and leave the matter against Resteiner and the Prime Minister in tact. A strange ommission in the submission advanced to stop the Case against the Mitchells - is the absence of any response to the claim that both parties are U.S. Citizens. In addressing the issue of diversity of Citizenship, and Federal jurisdiction in that context, all the reply stated was that the complaint alleged that the Mitchells are U.S. Citizens and residents of Grenada - and as an aside, it added that the Prime Minister of Grenada is a Citizen of Grenada, but the motion for dismissal does not depend on that point. We now must wait to hear the outcome when the application comes up for hearing on the 3rd October, 2007, in Court. So regardless of the names given to Grenadian Lawyers - in connection with those Foreign claims involving our top politicians - the treasury has to find money to pay those politicians legal fees; and unlike our system in Grenada and the OECS Court as a whole - Fees paid to Lawyers in the U.S.A. are not recoverable from the other side when any side wins.