UNC MPs support Opposition Leader against LATT

UNC MPs Rodney Charles and Rushton Paray said they supported Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar’s call for the Law Association (LATT) to publish the names of attorneys who supported Attorney General Reginald Armour SC during a vote on a motion of no-confidence against him.

Charles noted the statements by LATT in general, and senior counsel Israel Khan in particular, calling on the Opposition Leader to apologise for highlighting the fundamental conflicts of interest by many senior legal practitioners who failed to disclose conflicts relating to their endorsement of the AG.

“My own view is that the Opposition Leader was right to disclose the fact that many who voiced their support for the embattled AG did not make full disclosure.

"Maybe they, like the AG, simply forgot. Maybe they felt that it would weaken their case, maybe they hoped that we would not notice, or, like the AG’s omission in the Miami courts, they probably felt that it was a minor matter. If those are the thoughts of senior members of our bench, our legal luminaries, our legal exemplars, then heaven help us and especially young practitioners in the field.”

He said Persad-Bissessar acted in his view on a high principle of full disclosure, regardless of the consequences.

“My view is that she acted correctly, appropriately and in the highest ethical traditions of honesty, integrity and full disclosure.”

Paray said he had seen some of the notes coming out of the meeting and the rationales used to support the AG were “interesting.”

“I hope at some point they will release the transcripts. I find it interesting that people want to chastise the Opposition Leader for speaking out, but the AG, who made a serious error in judgment, can do no wrong.”

Charles said based on the documents he had seen, many of the arguments raised by purported legal luminaries seemed to suggest that the AG was being supported on the basis of friendship, cocktail circuit camaraderie, and “incestuous relationships.”

At a UNC virtual report forum on July 18, the Opposition leader accused some lawyers of “grovelling” to support Armour at the July 15th debate on the motion of no confidence.

At the vote, 317 lawyers were against the motion of no confidence, while 301 voted against the motion to call on Armour to resign as AG. Both motions failed.

At the special general meeting of the Law Association, Armour apologised to the legal fraternity and several senior attorneys spoke out in his defence during the debate on the motions brought by a requisition from 40 attorneys, led by Kiel Taklalsingh.

The Opposition Leader said those who voted against the motion and spoke out in defence of Armour did so to protect their state briefs and board appointments.

She has been on the receiving end of public criticism from various quarters, including the association, for her attack on members of the inner bar and other lawyers as well as her call for the release of the transcripts of the meeting as such meetings are usually held in private.