Partner in Al-Rawi law firm spent 4 years in Attorney General's office

Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi during a press conference at the Ministry of the Attorney General and Legal Affairs, Port of Spain on December 21, 2020. - Photo by Ayanna Kinsale
Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi during a press conference at the Ministry of the Attorney General and Legal Affairs, Port of Spain on December 21, 2020. - Photo by Ayanna Kinsale

PRIOR to joining the law firm Al-Rawi, Haynes-Soo Hon and Company, senior partner Zelica Haynes-Soo Hon spent four years working as part of the staff for Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi.

The law firm, owned by Mona Nahous Al-Rawi, the AG's wife, was hired by the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) after the Sanatan Dharma Maha Sabha sent a pre-action protocol letter to the Cabinet on the new national scholarship policy. The OPM also hired senior counsel Douglas Mendes, Michael Quamina and Rishi Dass.

In last Monday's Newsday, the AG denied he had any role in in the hiring of his wife’s law firm to represent the Cabinet in which he is a central figure.

Newsday called, sent text messages and emailed Haynes-Soo Hon about her connection to the Al-Rawis and the hiring of the law firm, but received no response.

Emails to the OPM, permanent secretary in the OPM and Ministry of Communication, on what it cost the state to hire the law firm, along with what other work it has received in the past, all went unanswered.

According to her Linked In profile, Haynes-Soo Hon spent ten years at the Ministry of the Attorney General and Legal Affairs – from December 2009 to December 2019 – before resigning as a legal officer III. She then joined her former boss’ wife’s firm as a partner.

Al-Rawi said his office would not hire his wife’s law firm but other ministries were allowed to hire whoever they want.

“If the OPM decides to hire her law firm, that is their prerogative,” Al-Rawi said in Monday's article.

Commenting on the issue, Opposition Senator Jayanti Lutchmedial said the AG is the state’s lawyer and was essentially saying he found nothing wrong with the Cabinet hiring his wife’s law firm, where he worked prior to public life.

Lutchmedial said she was aware that Haynes-Soo Hon was previously at the AG’s ministry before joining the firm.

“I reiterate that the public must feel assured that there is no favouritism or preferential treatment when the expenditure of public funds is involved. This is why independent oversight, which the PP government put into the Procurement Act, is so important.”

She added: “It does not bode well for accountability and transparency when the PNM government removes this oversight for legal services and then procures professional services from persons so closely affiliated to the AG, more so, given that the AG is the person with responsibility for legal matters.”

Lutchmedial also likened the hiring of the law firm to allegations made by former attorney general Anand Ramlogan against his predecessor John Jeremie. Ramlogan claimed there were connections between Jeremie and legal briefs awarded to his law firm, Alexander-Jeremie and Co and promised to probe the allegations.

At the time, Ramlogan also defended the hiring of his “A team” who, the then opposition leader Dr Keith Rowley, said were friends of Ramlogan and claimed they had received hefty state briefs to conduct probes into allegations of corruption and represent the state.

Ramlogan along with former UNC senator Gerald Ramdeen, a member of the “A team”, are before the courts charged with allegedly conspiring to financially reward themselves with fees from legal briefs from the state.

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