High Court: Trade Minister must establish appeal process for labs

A High Court judge has ruled that the Minister of Trade and Industry failed to establish a lawful appeal process against decisions by the TT Laboratory Accreditation Service (TTLAS).

In a ruling on February 25, Justice Kevin Ramcharan held Kaizen Environmental Services (Trinidad) Ltd was denied its constitutional right to a fair hearing of the TTLAS’s suspension of its accreditation.

Ramcharan found the minister was legally obligated to prescribe an appeals process for decisions made by TTLAS under Regulation 46 of the Standards Act, Chapter 82:03, but failed to do so.

He said an appeals process must be implemented by “the law of the land,” even if international standards empower TTLAS to establish an appeals procedure.

He said the regulations made it clear who had to establish the process of appealing any decision from TTLAS.

“It is the minister who must consult with the TTBS (TT Bureau of Standards) in establishing such procedures.”

Ramcharan also held that the regulations did not empower TTLAS to prescribe the appeals procedure, although the international standard does mandate that there must be one.

“The party clothed with the power to prescribe the procedure is only the minister.

“The regulations give an aggrieved party the right to appeal the decision of the TTLAS, therefore, the minister is mandated to prescribe the procedure by which the appeal is to be conducted.”

Ramcharan added, “If there is no valid appeals procedure, then the claimant is deprived of its right to appeal

the decision of TTLAS, and its right to a fair hearing.

“The fact that there is an appeals procedure in place currently does not assist the defendant as this procedure is unlawful, not having been established in accordance with the regulations.”

In its lawsuit, Kaizen Environmental Services, a leading environmental testing laboratory, said it has provided industrial analytical services in TT since 1997. The company has been accredited by TTLAS for years, offering services such as effluent testing for the National Infrastructure Development Company Ltd (Nidco); water quality testing at landfills for the Solid Waste Management Co Ltd; and testing for the desalination company.

In February 2024, TTLAS suspended Kaizen’s accreditation. Despite Kaizen’s efforts to rectify nonconformities identified during a 2023 audit, the company’s accreditation remained suspended, severely impacting its operations, contracts, and financial stability.

Kaizen attempted to appeal the suspension, only to discover that no official appeal process had ever been established under the regulations which mandated the minister to create an appeals procedure in consultation with the TTBS. Instead, the company’s lawsuit said the TTBS implemented its own appeal process.

Kaizen said it suffered a decline in earnings of approximately $200,000 per month; lost over 10 major clients due to delays in testing services; incurred additional costs from outsourcing services to its parent company in Canada and risked the closure of its operations if its accreditation is not reinstated soon.

Ramcharan granted Kaizen’s constitutional claim, declaring that Kaizen’s constitutional rights were breached and that the minister must establish a proper appeal process.

Ramcharan ordered the state to pay Kaizen damages, including vindicatory damages, which he will assess.

The state was also ordered to cover Kaizen’s legal costs, certified for one senior and one junior counsel.

Ramcharan set deadlines for both parties to submit further evidence on damages, with a hearing scheduled for May 26.

Kaizen was represented by Anand Ramlogan, SC, Kent Samlal, Robert Abdool-Mitchell and Vishaal Siewsaran.