HOUSTON, USA (Reuters) -- Allen Stanford, the billionaire Texan charged with an $8 billion Ponzi scheme, on Monday asked a US appeals court to intervene in a civil fraud case filed against him by the US Securities and Exchange Commission, a court filing showed. Stanford is challenging the lower court's orders. read more...

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ROAD TOWN, BVI: The Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (ECSC) is to get a world class commercial court within the next two months. A highly experienced Queen's Counsel has been appointed to preside over the court, and the building that will house the court will be completed early June. read more...

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GEORGETOWN, Guyana: The law as it stands prevents Guyana from extraditing any of its citizens to the United States. Furthermore, the treaty between Guyana and the United States does not prevent the United States from extraditing Guyanese citizens to a third country, in contravention of local laws and treaties. read more...

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GEORGETOWN, Guyana: Justice delayed is justice denied. There are hundreds of part heard cases and matters in Guyana where judges have concluded the hearing of cases, but have failed to write their decisions. The Guyana government is trying to curb this and has introduced legislation. read more...

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NASSAU, Bahamas (BIS): The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council; the final court of appeal of The Bahamas, affects “the lives of Bahamians, the region and people in the wider common-law world,” Bahamas Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs Senator Michael Barnett said on Monday. read more...

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GEORGE TOWN, Cayman Islands: The Net News Group (NNG), a widely-read media publishing and communications company based in the Cayman Islands, has established a contributor partnership with McClatchy-Tribune Information Services (MCT), one of the largest media groups in the United States. read more...

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GEORGETOWN, Guyana: A High Court judge in Guyana has complained to the Chief Justice that it was brought to her attention that at least three divorce petitions were purportedly granted by her when in fact she never heard the cases. In the letter to the Chief Justice, Justice George referred to the three cases. read more...

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PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad: Edwin Carrington, Secretary General of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), has been summoned to give evidence before the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) next week in a multi-million dollar legal battle between Trinidad Cement Limited (TCL) and CARICOM. read more...

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As we approach the fourth anniversary of the establishment of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ), no other country has joined the regional court. But during the past two weeks there have been rumblings - one from Belize, in a positive manner, and the other from Dominica: Join or dismantle. read more...

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BELMOPAN, Belize: Britain’s Privy Council has handed down a judgment in favour of the Belize government and Telemedia against US investor Jeffrey Prosser. For years, Prosser’s companies, Belize Telecom Limited and Innovative Communication Company, have been embroiled in legal wrangling. read more...

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GEORGETOWN, Guyana: Former attorney general of Guyana, Bernard Da Santos, says that there were many contributory factors that have led to the heavy backlog of court cases in the country. He said that a number of pending cases were either abandoned, the parties were deceased or people settled the cases on their own. read more...

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HOUSTON, USA (Bloomberg): Laura Pendergest-Holt, who is accused by federal regulators of helping Allen Stanford swindle $8 billion from investors, has sued Lloyd’s of London to get funds to pay for her defence. Pendergest-Holt was refused coverage under Stanford’s directors and officers policy three times. read more...

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GEORGETOWN, Guyana: The disclosure in the Guyana Supreme Court Annual Report for 2007 that 21,366 civil cases and 512 criminal matters are pending before the courts, has raised the ire of the leader of the opposition Alliance for Change (AFC), Raphael Trotman. read more...

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LONDON, England: Judges with Caribbean roots are apparently being overlooked in Britain, and to this end judges in England and Wales are holding their first conference to try to increase the number of women and people from ethnic minorities in their ranks. The number of law lords from an ethic minority is zero. read more...

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BELIZE CITY, Belize: Belize will rid itself of the Privy Council and will accept the Caribbean Court of Justice as its final court of appeal. This announcement was made by the country's Prime Minister Dean Barrow when he addressed CARICOM leaders at the opening of the Twentieth Inter-Sessional Meeting. read more...

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BRIDGETOWN, Barbados: Barbados Chief Justice, Sir David Simmons, who is also the President of the Court of Appeal, has expressed amazement that the seven members of the disciplinary committee did not know that the limitation period for filing a writ had been extended from one year to three years. read more...

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Former St Vincent and the Grenadines Prime Minister, Sir James Mitchell, in his autobiography entitled "Beyond the Islands", referred to the role he played in removing a lawyer-politician from active politics. In his memoirs, he said, "I had tried in the previous election to get him to quit politics altogether with a QC." read more...

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HOUSTON, USA (Bloomberg): Two Mexican investors asked a US judge for permission to sue Allen Stanford and his companies in Mexico after federal regulators accused the Texas financier of orchestrating an $8 billion fraud. Mexico’s laws provide broader investor protections than US laws. read more...

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ST THOMAS, USVI: Superior Court Judge in St Thomas, US Virgin Islands, Leon Kendall, has jailed a prosecutor for being tardy, and the territory's Attorney General has criticised the Guyana-born judge for taking such drastic action and said the judge could have imposed a fine rather than arrest. read more...

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ROAD TOWN, BVI: Any legislation that is enacted to guide and regulate the legal profession in the British Virgin Islands will be supported by the BVI Bar Association. Minister of Education, Andrew Fahie said he has been speaking with the Attorney General to formulate legislation. read more...

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It is interesting to read that CARICOM Secretary General, Edwin Carrington has called on regional leaders to accept the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) as the final court. We have entered into another year -- the fourth year since the CCJ was inaugurated -- and no other country has joined Guyana and Barbados. read more...

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ST JOHN’S, Antigua: Antigua and Barbuda Attorney General, Justin Simon, said that his immediate case load took precedence over the writ issued recently by the opposition Antigua Labour Party (ALP) applying to the court for equal access to state media during the election period. read more...

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PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad: After more than three and a half years since its establishment, the Caribbean Court of Justice will on Thursday hand down its first decision under its original jurisdiction. The CCJ has two branches – the original jurisdiction and the appellate jurisdiction. read more...

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ST JOHN’S, Antigua: The Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court on Monday ruled against the Antigua-Barbuda government in a move by the Baldwin Spencer administration to gain access to the financial accounts of one of the opposition party’s top supporters, and former Minister of Government. read more...

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PROVIDENCIALES, Turks and Caicos Islands: The Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI) Supreme Court on Monday refused to lift a freeze order on the multimillion dollar assets of embattled Olint principal David Smith and his wife, Tracey Smith. The Smiths' assets in the Turks and Caicos were frozen on July 10, 2008. read more...

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GEORGETOWN, Guyana: The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretary-General, Edwin Carrington has supported the call for all CARICOM Member States to fully adopt the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) as the final Court of Appeal, echoing recent pleas by prominent legal practitioners. read more...

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NASSAU, Bahamas (BIS): Law reform will be among the list of priorities for The Bahamas government in 2009 advised the Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs Michael Barnett as he addressed a special sitting of the Court of Appeal of The Bahamas to mark the opening of the legal year. read more...

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CASTRIES, St Lucia: The Judicial and Legal Services Commission has appointed two new female Court of Appeal judges in the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (ECSC). They are Ola Mae Edwards, a Jamaican who has been acting as Court of Appeal judge, and Janice George-Creque, a British Virgin Islander. read more...

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CASTRIES, St Lucia: Eastern Caribbean appellate court judge Denys Barrow SC has taken early retirement. A farewell sitting of the Belizean-born judge was held at the High Court in St Lucia at which Chief Justice Hugh Rawlins presided. The retired judge is the brother of Belize’s new prime minister, Dean Barrow. read more...

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ST JOHN’S, Antigua: Retired Chief Immigration Officer, Lt Colonel Clyde Walker has instructed his lawyers to file contempt proceedings against the Antigua and Barbuda government to recoup more than EC$500,000 (approximately US$200,000) as part of a retirement settlement granted to him. read more...

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PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad: Trinidad and Tobago Attorney General Bridgid Annisette-George has said that the global financial crisis has heightened the need for Caribbean countries to support the full implementation of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ). The CCJ was established in February 2001. read more...

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PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad: Former attorney general of Trinidad and Tobago, Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj, a Senior Counsel, who is also the opposition Chief Whip, is calling for the suspension of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ). He said that the CCJ was costing regional governments millions of dollars. read more...

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PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad: A former Trinidad and Tobago magistrate, who was suspended by the Judicial and Legal Services Commission (JLSC) for overruling a judge's decision, has just won a long-standing suit he filed against the government claiming damages for wrongful suspension. read more...

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BRIDGETOWN, Barbados: Tyrone DaCosta Cadogan is presently on death row in Barbados having been sentenced to the mandatory death penalty. On 31st October 2008, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights filed an application with the Inter-American Court of Human Rights against Barbados. read more...

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It is more than three and a half years since the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) was inaugurated with two countries, Guyana and Barbados accepting the CCJ as the final court of appeal and although seven governments have changed in the region within this period, the number still stands at two. read more...

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Thou shall not kill is the sixth commandment and the question is being asked, “Is it right for the state to impose the death penalty against someone who murdered another?" Jamaica lawmakers will make this decision on Tuesday. It seems as if most of them feel that the death penalty should remain. read more...

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PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad: Justice Mustapha Ibrahim has awarded the Agricultural Development Bank (ADB) of Trinidad and Tobago close to TT$20 million (US$3.3m) against Agrifin Company Limited and its directors, Luciano, Kathleen and Giovali Casolari, plus interest and costs. read more...

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ROAD TOWN, BVI: British Virgin Islands magistrate Valerie Stephens has banned a reporter from her court because the online publication in question carried a report concerning a burglary at the magistrate's home and the editor refused to pull the story when requested to do so. read more...

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PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad: A Trinidad and Tobago High Court judge has a difficult task to determine whether or not a Muslim female wearing a burkah, which obscures the face, should be disqualified from sitting as a juror. Justice Joan Charles reserved her decision after hearing submissions from lawyers. read more...

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PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad: The Privy Council has ruled that former United National Congress (UNC) government minister Finbar Gangar must face the two charges of knowingly failing to declare two foreign bank accounts to the Integrity Commission, while he served in the Basdeo Panday-led government. read more...

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