business@tribunemedia.net
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 2021
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BRITISH COLONIAL HILTON
Law firm break-up blew Hilton lift plunge lawsuit • Hotel maid lost out in Lockhart & Munroe split • Judge finds she sued wrong firm for ‘negligence’ • But orders Munroe’s new practice to repay $300 By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
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• Realtor: Middle class paying higher tax rate than millionaires • Urges $60,000 property tax cap to be raised to low six-figures • And calls for further adjustments to make system progressive
By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net A BAHAMIAN realtor yesterday argued that “the freebie for the mega wealthy has got to stop” as he urged the Government to exploit the current high-end real estate boom to boost property tax revenues. Christopher Armaly, a prominent broker and appraiser, told Tribune Business the newly-elected Davis administration should particularly seek to raise a $60,000 annual real property tax cap that results in middle class Bahamians effectively paying a higher tax rate than persons with homes valued $10m and above. All owner-occupied homes, meaning those residences used exclusively as dwellings by their owners, enjoy a tax break on the first $250,000 of their property’s valuation. A rate of
0.625 percent is applied to the next $250,000, and this increases to 1 percent for the remaining portion of the valuation above $500,000. However, Mr Armaly said the $60,000 maximum limit on annual real property tax payments effectively leaves a $40m property owner’s tax rate at just 0.15 percent. This is four times’ below the rate applied to the $250,000-$500,000 portion of a property’s worth. Applying the cap to properties valued at $30m, $20m and $10m results in effective tax rates of 0.2 percent; 0.3 percent; and 0.6 percent respectively, all below the property tax rate that middle class Bahamians - who have less income and ability to pay - face on owner-occupied residences between $250,000 and $500,000. Highlighting this as a regressive aspect of The Bahamas’ real property tax regime, Mr Armaly urged the new administration to increase the real property tax cap
CHRISTOPHER ARMALY
SEE PAGE 5
Fiscal Council wanted more recovery evidence By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net THE Fiscal Responsibility watchdog’s chairman last night revealed it had wanted to see more evidence to support the Government’s belief “of a rapid return to normalcy” following the COVID-19 pandemic. Kevin Burrows, speaking after the Fiscal Responsibility Council released its first-ever evaluation, an assessment of the Government’s 2020 Fiscal Strategy Report, told Tribune Business it had wanted to see more metrics, timelines and “explicit reasons” on “the underlying drivers that will get us back to trend” so quickly post-pandemic.
SEE PAGE 6
SEE PAGE 4
Activists urge ‘permanent’ ban on all oil exploration ENVIRONMENTAL activists yesterday urged the Davis administration to impose a total ban on oil drilling in Bahamian waters after an explorer confirmed it has still to settle outstanding licence fees due to the Government. Rashema Ingraham, executive director of Waterkeepers Bahamas, told Tribune Business it was “embarrassing” that the former Bahamas Petroleum Company (BPC) had now moved on to more promising exploration territory in Trinidad & Tobago without first settling its debts to this nation. Calling on Challenger to “acknowledge debts owed to all creditors”, she said: “It’s embarrassing to see that Challenger Energy Group who, after not finding commercial quantities of oil, are considering moving on to another Caribbean country without settling its debt to the Bahamian people. “The Davis administration began its term with a strong platform when the Prime Minister spoke to the United Nations (UN), and that includes becoming a sustainable country knowing the effects that climate change has on small island
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‘Freebie for mega wealthy must end’
A HOTEL maid’s bid to obtain financial redress from the British Colonial Hilton was scuppered by the break-up of a law firm then co-headed by a newly-elected Cabinet minister. Margo Thompson had approached the now-dissolved Lockhart & Munroe law firm in an effort to hire Wayne Munroe QC, now minister of national security, to initiate legal action over injuries she suffered when the resort’s elevator plunged from the sixth to the ground floor during a November 2005 power outage.
By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
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developing states like The Bahamas. “To show how serious we are about what we have experienced, and what we expect can happen, placing a permanent ban on oil drilling within our borders
must be a strong point for the Davis administration. We should not contribute to an industry that is leading to our demise as an industry.” However, the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP), while
SEE PAGE 6
PAGE 2, Tuesday, September 28, 2021
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BAHAMIAN PROVIDER HITS ‘GOLD’ AT REGIONAL SUMMIT A BAHAMAS-BASED cloud and managed services provider was a “gold sponsor” at the recent annual Caribbean Telecommunications Union (CTU) conference. Cloud Carib, which made its debut as a sponsor of CTU’s Information and Communications Technology (ICT) week in 2019, presented as featured guest speaker on several topics and panels at an event which focused on the Caribbean’s digital transformation post-COVID. “Cloud Carib has been participating in CTU events since 2018”, said Eamonn Sheehy, its director of public sector. “We have found these events very useful in educating the region on important matters impacting the industry such as data sovereignty, and the need for governments to urgently consider where citizen data is processed and stored. “During this year’s CTU ICT Week, it became clear that data residency and securing citizen data are now major topics of interest in regional ICT discussions, and Cloud Carib is proud to have played a significant
role in pushing these critical issues to the fore.” The week-long series of events officially began on Monday, September 2, 2021, with virtual sessions focused on the theme, Regional imperatives for digital transformation post-COVID-19 “The post-pandemic environment in this region and around the world will require that the industry thinks differently about the way we engage with, manage and protect our data,” said Cloud Carib chief executive, Scott MacKenzie, who was one of three Cloud Carib presenters at this year’s conference. “We had been promoting this issue for several years prior to the outbreak. “However, since the emergence of the COVID19 pandemic, this topic has significantly increased in importance with the accelerated use of global cloud-based applications as part of organisational strategies for remote working and government systems to manage the new frameworks introduced to facilitate upgrades to healthcare systems, and even to manage travel and
IN 2019, Cloud Carib’s chief technology officer, Stelios Xeroudakis, and vice-president of solutions, Mark Arruda, participated in one-on-one sessions with regional leaders hosted by the Caribbean Telecommunications Union (CTU). The pair are pictured in conversation with Barbados’ minister of innovation, science and smart technology, Senator Kay McConney, during the last inperson CTU conference before COVID-19. border patrol efforts in a COVID environment.” Also among the featured speakers was Cloud Carib’s vice-president of solutions, Mark Arruda, who brought years of industry expertise to bear on the discourse surrounding a CARICOM digital identity and the long-term impacts to the region. “The CTU has done a fantastic job of attracting
the best and brightest talent from across the region. From Caribbean regulators, senior executives from regional ICT organisations, international ICT agencies, the private sector and civil society, making it a unique opportunity for virtual networking, promoting, and advancing your organisation,” said Mr Arruda. “It is critical for Cloud Carib and other ICT
experts to be a part of this organisation. At Cloud Carib, we continue to look forward to the introduction of our Centre of Excellence (CoE) which will add to the resources available to industry professionals by providing a space within the region. “The new CoE provides technologists of the next generation a place to gather to collaborate
and learn from each other, while also providing stateof-the-art security and infrastructure backbone to promote more STEM camps, mini conferences, innovation workshops and more,” Mr Arruda added. “We are equally excited about our continued partnership with the CTU and other stakeholders to not only be a voice for The Bahamas in these regional forums but to drive progress in the Caribbean and accelerate digital transformation.” For over three decades, the CTU has worked with ICT stakeholders to develop an environment of collaboration that will lead to greater returns for its members. For the 20 Caribbean countries that make up the union, this has meant access to resources, networking and opportunities with member governments; telecommunication operators and regulators; technology companies; academics; regional and international ICT organisations; and civil society.
DPM MEETS MINISTRY OF TOURISM WORKERS CHESTER COOPER, deputy prime minister and minister of tourism, investments and aviation, meets and greets tourism staff along with permanent secretary, Reginald Saunders; directorgeneral, Joy Jibrilu; and executive director/administrative, Ian Ferguson. Photos:Kemuel Stubbs/BIS
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Tuesday, September 28, 2021, PAGE 3
Taxi union hits out at Atlantis By YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporter ykemp@tribunemedia.net THE Bahamas Taxicab Union (BTCU) yesterday hit out at Atlantis in a row over the enforcement of COVID-19 health and safety protocols, asserting that a recent incident was the “straw that broke the camel’s back”. Wesley Ferguson, its president, confirmed to Tribune Business he has sent a letter to resort executives complaining about how his members are being treated by Atlantis personnel. Urging the resort to back off, he wrote: “In spite of numerous telephone calls and e-mails to Atlantis executives, in a concerted effort to create a peaceful and smooth operation between Atlantis security, mid-management staff and taxi drivers amid this
COVID-19 environment, it appears to be to no avail. “An incident between an executive member of the BTCU and your [employee]......was the straw that certainly broke the camel’s back on this issue...... Firstly, taxi drivers operating from Atlantis properties, though they are mandated to adhere to certain rules, regulations and protocols, they are not employees of Atlantis; they simply operate from there. “They are self-employed individuals and, in most cases, are touted as ambassadors of this country and should be treated as such. Taxi drivers, for the most part, are fully vaccinated and certainly up-to-date in their antigen testa. For the most part, they are more than willing to go the extra mile in following the new rules and protocols that they find to be reasonable in the fight to keep themselves and your guests safe.
ATLANTIS RESORT “They also provide a vital and invaluable service to your guest for which you cannot successfully and effectively operate
without.” Mr Ferguson also complained that Atlantis staff were seeking to take over taxi operations and discipline drivers, while also forcing the latter to remain
in their vehicles, as he hinted at industrial/union action if the matter was not resolved. Atlantis executives could not be reached for
comment up to press time, despite numerous messages and phone calls by Tribune Business.
Training start-up eyes Caribbean expansion By YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporter ykemp@tribunemedia.net A COVID-19 start-up is aiming to expand into the Caribbean within a year of next month’s launch, its president said yesterday. Lisa R. McCartney, president of the Online Training Authority, told Tribune Business her “COVIDbaby” was launched in response to the difficulties many Bahamians endured in seeking qualified instructors and trainers during the COVID-19 lockdown. That period saw many
individuals revert to home schooling and long-distance learning. “Basically, we’ll be open for business this October,” she said. “I’ve been homeschooling for over 16 years, and I’m on the board of the Bahamas Home School Association. What used to happen is I would often get a lot of calls, and people would Facebook me or recommend me on Facebook for someone looking for a tutor. Or they are looking for a curriculum or they want someone to home school their child, and they would ask me to assist.” Last summer, after seeing the level of interest in
online training resources, Ms McCartney said: “It was a God-inspired idea because it came when I was listening to someone talk about creating income during the pandemic. Amid all the questions about finding the perfect tutor, coach, trainer or curriculum, Ms McCartney said she wondered if there was anything in The Bahamas that linked these services together. After a brief survey she found there was nothing, so she started her own website as a “marketing tool” for trainers of all types. Ms McCartney added: “Right now there is no
CORRECTION
The photo accompanying the Page 3B article in Tribune Business on Monday, September 27, headlined Brewery chief: Pre-COVID revenues not back till 2023, was incorrect. It should have shown a picture of Commonwealth Brewery, but
inadvertently showed the Bahamian Brewery and Beverage Company’s premises. The correct picture is shown here, and this newspaper apologises for the mistake and any confusion caused.
place that provides a home for the trainer as a coach. When everything moved online, these trainers were trying to connect with their clients and you have clients looking for trainers and coaches and tutors, and these people were just not connecting. “With the Online Training Authority (OTA) that’s what we do. We help trainers connect with learners. We are just loading trainers on to our website, which is active right now, so what you will see in preparation for our initial soft launch is demo trainers.” The OTA is offering the first 30 days free to
all trainers who sign on to the platform. After that they will be charged a monthly fee. “What we do is all of the marketing and all of the promotions, because we understand building a website is costly and not everyone has the resources to spend upwards of $3,000 for a website for themselves,” Ms McCartney said. In the upcoming days, registration of tutors, coaches and trainers, particularly in the Bahamas and Caribbean region, will begin. A complete profile, including a picture, brief description of an area of expertise, and contact
information are required to complete successful enrollment. Ms McCartney said: “We’re encouraging trainers of all walks of life, or anywhere in The Bahamas and Caribbean. Because now everything is worldwide now, we have to create the platform for a worldwide audience, so if you are in Jamaica you can sign up to the website and market your training services. This will also develop into a ‘training the trainers’ platform as well.”
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FISCAL COUNCIL WANTED MORE RECOVERY EVIDENCE FROM PAGE ONE However, he pointed out that the Council’s assessment was “not a scathing report”, and added that he would not want Bahamians to gain the impression that it was a “bad” outcome even though numerous deficiencies and areas for improvement were identified.
“It was a bit of a trek getting the website done and getting the report done,” Mr Burrows acknowledged to this newspaper. “We felt with this being the first of its kind in The Bahamas and, interestingly, we are the first Fiscal Responsibility Council not mandated by the IMF in this region, we felt particularly burdened to make sure we set
the bar high for ourselves and other councils to follow in The Bahamas and the Caribbean.” Suggesting that such Councils will become more common in the region, Mr Burrows agreed that the five-strong body - featuring himself; Gowon Bowe, Fidelity Bank (Bahamas) chief executive; Bar Association president, Quincy Parker; attorney Christel Sands-Feaste; and Dale McHardy from the University of The Bahamas - had wanted to see more evidence to back the Government’s quick rebound expectations. “I think if you look at the Fiscal Strategy Report and the subsequent Budget, you see sort of a rapid return to normalcy after a few years of recovery,” Mr Burrows told Tribune Business. “We thought we would have hoped to have seen more explicit reasons behind why we get back to normal so quickly, the timing and the underlying drivers that would get us back to trend. “Even if delayed, we wanted to see the metrics that would return us to trend. Some countries run on a parallel path to trend for decades before returning to trend. We thought that could have been better
KEVIN BURROWS highlighted among the issues in the Fiscal Strategy Report.” The Fiscal Strategy Report 2020 was released last December by the Minnis administration, so the evaluation does not cover any work by the present government. Mr Burrows was also quick to point out that the Council’s role was not to comment, or determine, whether the Government’s fiscal policy was bad, or revenue or spending estimates too optimistic, but instead to determine whether the data and its presentation comply with the Fiscal Responsibility Act. Outlining the Fiscal Strategy Report’s weaknesses, the Council said: “Fiscal Strategy Report 2020 presents strategies and narratives that are not supported by metrics, and policies and actions to address specific issues, with no indication of the actual projected impact of these measures on the fiscal outlook. “The assertion that ‘improved tax
administration to increase revenue yield and continued tax policy reforms’, and the winding down of incentive schemes associated with external shocks, will fill gaps that cannot ‘be achieved by economic growth alone’, and still support achievement of stated objectives, is not supported by detail of how this will be achieved, and the expectant impact. “Fiscal Strategy Report 2020 does not frame reforms and projected activity into projected fiscal outcomes, lacking dimensions of time and dollar values. Timelines and impacts are non-specific and not supported by robust data. How stated public sector reforms, structural reforms and economic policy translate into measurable impacts should be presented, along with the mechanisms and timelines to achieve these ends.” Giving a specific example to back its concerns, the Council said: “The Government’s revenue outlook projects improvements in government’s revenue in 2021-2022 to 17.5 percent of GDP. This is up from a projected 14.5 percent of GDP for 2020-2021, with further assumption of ‘little to no effect of the COVID19 pandemic during 2022-2023’. “Fiscal Strategy Report 2020 predicts revenue reaching 19.5 percent of GDP and trending higher to 20 percent and 20.5 percent in ensuing fiscal years. This scenario, Fiscal Strategy Report 2020 explains, ‘is predicated upon government
NOTICE NOTICE is hereby given that LOUVINSGYE ANDILULO SYLVESTRE of Mount Royal Avenue, Nassau, The Bahamas, is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for Registration Naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 28th day of September, 2021 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.
NOTICE NOTICE is hereby given that ALONZO MARK KNOWLES of Guana Cay Avenue, Fox Hill Road, Nassau, Bahamas is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for registration/ naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 28th day of September, 2021 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, Bahamas.
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continuing to address gaps in revenue administration and to secure progress on critical reform efforts to ensure fiscal sustainability’. “The narrative, however, does not identify the specific gaps and reforms, or what their projected impact on the fiscal account is expected to be. There are no timelines and no measures provided to assess the extent that such initiatives are expected to drive the revenue outlook that the Government projects,” the Council continued. “Returns ‘from the ongoing real property tax rollout’ are mentioned, as are accumulating benefits ‘of the Click2Clear customs clearing arrangement’ and other areas. But none are associated with data projections or other means of interpreting and assessing the expected impact.” The same issues were highlighted with the Government’s spending projections. “Fiscal Strategy 2020 explains that revenue forecasts for fiscal year 2021- 2022 to fiscal year 2024-2025 assume ‘the disruptive effects of COVID-19 on economic activity are mitigated by the roll out of the COVID19 vaccine to support a rebound in nominal GDP growth to a forecasted 7.1 percent in 2021- 2022’,” the Council said. “The projected 7.1 percent growth rate in nominal GDP, though critical, is not supported with an explanation of how the forecasted data was derived, and the summation of ‘disruptive effects’ being ‘mitigated by the roll out’ of the vaccine requires more detail on specific disruptions, strategies and projected impacts, timing and outcomes. “On the expenditure side of the fiscal outlook, Government’s current expenditure reductions for forecasted fiscal years 2021-2022 through to 20242025 assume reductions in subventions to stateowned-enterprises ‘through activities aimed at making these entities more selfsufficient and efficient’. Supporting context however is not presented.” Mr Burrows also said it was “a grey area” as to whether what the Government had presented met the requirement to produce a Fiscal Adjustment Plan, given that it had twice invoked the Fiscal Responsibility Act’s “exceptional circumstances” clause to deviate from the timelines for reducing The Bahamas’ debt-to-GDP ratio to 50 percent and narrowing the annual deficit to a maximum 0.5 percent of GDP. He added that such an adjustment plan would “give a lot of details and assumptions on how we would get back on track, and we didn’t quite see that in the information presented”.
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‘FREEBIE FOR MEGA WEALTHY MUST END’ FROM PAGE ONE to at least the low five-figure/high six-figure range to ensure that wealthy citizens and residents pay their fair share in taxes. Suggesting that the real property tax exemption threshold be increased from $250,000 to $400,000, so as to give middle and lower income Bahamians some relief, he also called on the Government to extend the Minnis administration’s VAT tax break on property sales to the same population segment. The former government, in the 2021-2022 Budget, increased the VAT rate on property sales to 12 percent for the portion of a property’s worth that is greater than $2m. Mr Armaly, though, suggested flipping this script and extending this tax break to lower and middle income Bahamians by dropping the VAT rate on the first $100,000 of a property being sold to just 2.5 percent. Acknowledging that he will likely “catch hell from my colleagues” in the real estate profession for making such suggestions, he argued that The Bahamas needed to break with “elitist” thinking and decision-making that has resulted in the country’s tax structure becoming increasingly less progressive and linked to ability to pay. “You cannot tell me that someone making $60,000 to $70,000 a year is paying a greater rate than someone making millions of dollars,” Mr Armaly told Tribune Business, noting that middle and lower income Bahamians are also becoming increasingly burdened with paying 12 percent VAT on all they consume. “Do you think $60,000 on a $40m home is enough tax? Think about that. Sixty thousand on a $40m home. It’s absolutely nothing. I understand we want to encourage investment, but if we want to do that, I, you, and everyone in our economic class should get the same rate. Why should they get the break and we get no break? We’re getting milked and milked. “I’m going to catch holy hell, but fair is fair, and at some point we have to have principals that we have to set. The freebie for the mega wealthy has got to
stop. I don’t want to sound like Joseph Stalin, but it has got to stop. It blows my mind. They got one letter, and they didn’t fight it. They turned around and ran off with their tail between their legs. They’re laughing at us, and it’s a freebie for them.” Mr Armaly’s reference to a letter alludes to the former Minnis administration’s 2018-2019 Budget u-turn when, after raising the VAT rate by 60 percent to 12 percent, it quickly backed down on changes to the Real Property Tax’s definition of ‘owner-occupied’ property following resistance from homeowners in Lyford Cay and other highend communities. They vehemently pushed back against reforms that would have both eliminated the then-$50,000 tax “cap” and doubled the tax rate faced by second homeowners not resident in The Bahamas for six months per year from 1 percent to 2 percent.
However, Mr Armaly - while emphasising that the annual property tax cap should not be raised to ridiculous levels - argued that an increase into the high five-figure/low six-figure range was unlikely to drive billionaire and multimillionaire owners from The Bahamas’ shores. “There’s no reason why we cannot go to $100,000$120,000 on the cap,” he argued. “I don’t think going from $60,000 to $70,000, $80,000, $90,000, $100,000 a year will make them go.” Asserting that such increases were likely “a drop in the bucket” for many wealthy foreign homeowners, Mr Armaly added that The Bahamas’ location, climate and reputation as a safe investment haven are all attractions difficult to pass up. And, he added, many Americans view offshore real estate investments in The Bahamas and elsewhere as a critical hedge
NOTICE NOTICE is hereby given that LUBIN VICTOR of Sandilands, Village Road, Nassau, The Bahamas, is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for Registration Naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 21st day of September, 2021 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.
NOTICE NOTICE is hereby given that JOLYNE ANGEL LUBIN of Coopers Town, Abaco, The Bahamas General Delivery, is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for Registration Naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 21st day of September, 2021 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.
against rising inflation and potential tax increases by the Biden administration at home. “They can afford it,” he added. “They make $60,000n every 15 minutes. One click of the mouse from the stock market. That’s why I don’t think it’s unreasonable. “Compared to other areas of the world, from what I can see on tax rates, the tax rates in the US and Canada are far higher. The last two to three Bahamian governments have concentrated on the mega wealthy; that’s all they wanted to bring in here, all upscale, all high-end. If that’s what they want, they need to pay.” The Progressive Liberal Party’s (PLP) election campaign Blueprint promised to “ensure high-end properties pay their real property tax, and “ensure commercial
Tuesday, September 28, 2021, PAGE 5
and foreign-owned properties are on the register and properly valued for tax purposes”. However, there was no mention of any tax rate increases or raising the $60,000 cap. Multiple realtors, when asked whether there is scope for generating more revenues from real property tax, typically argue against this on the basis that any rate hikes will drive buyers away and burst the current market ‘bubble’. They also suggest the Government seek to collect the $600m in outstanding real property taxes on the books first, and focus on other areas such as increasing the permanent residency threshold. However, with The Bahamas burdened by a $10.4bn national debt currently bigger than its economy’s size, as well as another
downgrade from Moody’s given its economic and fiscal woes, tax and revenue increases targeted at those with the ability to pay will likely have to be considered by the Government. “I would think I’m getting e-mails every day on multi-million properties sold,” Mr Armaly said. “The middle class market, though, is dead. The $300,000-$800,000 market is dead. The $3-$4m, $5m, $10m and up is booming. “I hope this government starts off on the right foot. I’d like them to raise the owner-occupied exemption threshold to $400,000, make that exempt, and I’d like the first $100,000 on the property transaction to be 2.5 percent, then pay 10 percent from $100,000 up. Let Bahamians get the benefit of $100,000 at 2.5 percent. At the high-end they’re getting the benefit of the first $2m at 10 percent. Give us the benefit too.”
PAGE 6, Tuesday, September 28, 2021
LAW FIRM BREAK-UP BLEW HILTON LIFT PLUNGE LAWSUIT FROM PAGE ONE Lockhart & Munroe ultimately filed a Writ of Summons against the British Colonial Hilton on October 24, 2008, claiming damages for personal injuries suffered by Mrs Thompson due to the elevator’s plummet. She was inside at the time. However, the writ was never served on the downtown Nassau hotel within the 12 months before it became “statute-barred”, and nor was any attempt made to renew it before that October 23, 2009, expiry. This occurred amid a falling-out between Mr Munroe and his then-partner, Elliott Lockhart QC, the former Exuma MP, which resulted in Lockhart & Munroe’s break-up and the two going in separate directions. Mr Munroe launched his own law firm, Munroe & Associates, in early August 2009. The file relating to Mrs Thompson’s case was ultimately transferred to Munroe & Associates, although there was “conflicting evidence” as to when this occurred. The hotel maid subsequently paid Mr Munroe’s firm $300 to renew the writ on November 7, 2011, but Justice Indra Charles said the amount of time that had elapsed meant the action against the British Colonial Hilton was already “unrevivable”.
The resort’s attorneys, Lennox Paton, subsequently succeeded in persuading Supreme Court registrar, Marilyn Meeres, to strike out Mrs Thompson’s claim on August 23, 2013. The maid subsequently sued Munroe & Associates for “professional negligence” but Justice Charles, in a September 22, 2021, verdict ruled that she had selected the wrong target. The Supreme Court judgment ruled that Mrs Thompson should instead have sued Lockhart & Munroe, or Messrs Munroe, Lockhart and Norwood Rolle in their capacities as the now-dissolved firm’s partners, because it - not Munroe & Associates - had carriage of the case when the initial 2008 case was allowed to expire. But, despite finding that this mistake “brings an end to this unfortunate dispute”, Justice Charles made clear her sympathies lay with Mrs Thompson. For besides not ordering her to pay Munroe & Associates’ legal costs, Justice Charles also ruled that the law firm needed to reimburse the $300 it charged Mrs Thompson to revive the writ when it knew “the writ was statute barred and its validity could not have been renewed”. “It is my firm view that I should depart from the usual order of awarding costs to the successful party, Munroe & Associates,”
Justice Charles said. “I do so because Mrs Thompson, a layperson, brought this action in good faith as a result of the loss of opportunity to pursue her claim against British Colonial Hilton. “This loss was caused by the dissolution of the initial firm and the fall-out associated with the changing of offices, none of which could be attributed to Mrs Thompson herself.” Also named in Justice Charles’ ruling is now-prime minister, Philip Davis QC. Mr Davis was engaged as the arbitrator to mediate the dispute between Messrs Munroe and Lockhart that arose from their split and, under his watch, it was agreed that all Lockhart & Munroe’s client files and accounts remain with Mr Lockhart unless the client submitted a written request that their case be transferred to Mr Munroe. There is nothing to suggest that Mr Davis did anything wrong in relation to Mrs Thompson’s case, although the timing of her file’s passing to Mr Munroe’s law firm played a key role in what Justice Charles branded “an unfortunate case”. “On or about November 2, 2005, Mrs Thompson, whilst employed as a hotel maid at the British Colonial Development Company, sustained personal injuries which she alleged occurred
when the service elevator which she was in plunged from the sixth floor to the ground floor of the hotel during a general electrical power outage,” Justice Charles wrote. “As a result, she suffered debilitating injuries requiring her to seek medical attention from doctors both here and in the US. As a result of her accident, she wanted to know what legal redress might be available to her against British Colonial. She approached the now-dissolved law firm of Lockhart & Munroe with the intention of engaging the legal services of Wayne Munroe.” Mrs Thompson did not speak to Mr Munroe, but instead saw his then-associate, Jairam Mangra. She paid a consultation fee and retainer prior to to her action’s October 2008 filing against the British Colonial Hilton and its holding company. Lockhart & Munroe was dissolved at end-August 2009, and Mrs Thompson’s action was never served on the hotel or extended. “Mrs Thompson’s file was transferred to Munroe & Associates, but there is conflicting evidence as to exactly when the file was transferred. At Munroe & Associates, she was unsuccessful in seeing Mr Munroe but she saw one of the associates of that firm,” Justice Charles added.
“Mrs Thompson then sued Munroe & Associates for professional negligence. She vehemently argued that, notwithstanding that she never spoke directly to Mr Munroe at either Lockhart & Munroe or Munroe & Associates, she was, at all material times, represented by him and that Munroe & Associates acted negligently resulting in the 2008 action being struck out. “On the other hand, Munroe & Associates contended that it is not liable for her loss since she was represented by Lockhart & Munroe as opposed to Munroe & Associates when the negligent omissions occurred. Munroe & Associates says that they did not represent Mrs Thompson until November 23, 2011, when she engaged them to renew the writ.” Mrs Thompson alleged that she was informed by Lockhart & Munroe in 2008 that Mr Munroe had taken her case file with him following the law firm’s break-up. One of his associates, Chernenka Rolle, was assigned to the matter and it was she who requested that $300 to revive the writ. However, the hotel maid admitted that she only met Mr Munroe at a community meeting in 2012 at Government High School when he was running as an election candidate for the Democratic National Alliance (DNA). And Mrs
ACTIVISTS URGE ‘PERMANENT’ BAN ON ALL OIL EXPLORATION FROM PAGE ONE in opposition, indicated that it was more open to allowing oil drilling in The Bahamas than its predecessor. Ms Ingraham spoke out after the now-Challenger Energy Group, in its 2020 full-year financial statements released yesterday, confirmed it has yet to settle the licence fees owed to the Government for past exploration periods. While the sum outstanding was not disclosed, it is thought to be several million dollars.
Challenger, affirming that itself and the former Minnis administration last year “agreed a process seeking a final agreement on the amount of licence fees payable for the balance of the second exploration period, blamed delays caused by the COVID-19 pandemic for both sides’ failure to reach an agreement. “This discussion has been delayed owing to the State of Emergency declared, and ongoing business disruption caused by the national response to the COVID-19 outbreak in The Bahamas.
However, subject to said confirmation, the company expects that an appropriate side-letter agreement will be finalised in due course,” Challenger said. It added that it remains in talks with the Government over a three-year renewal of its four southern licences, which would include an obligation to drill another exploratory oil well in Bahamian waters within that three year-period. “The group remains in discussions with the Government regarding renewal of these licences, and the
level of licence fees which remain to be paid for the current period,” Challenger added. “On formal renewal of the licences by the Government, the key licence obligation for the new three-year period will be the drilling of a further exploration well within the licence area before the expiry of the renewed licence term.” Eytan Uliel, Challenger’s new chief executive, told shareholders in his report that the company was hoping to secure “a major industry player” as its joint venture partner on another
exploration well. He added that the oil explorer had delivered on its obligations to The Bahamas by completing the Perseverance One well over the December 2020-February 2021 period even though no commercial oil quantities were found. “We all know the Perseverance One well did not result in a commercial discovery at that location. That is part of life in the oil and gas exploration business: No matter how much high-quality technical work precedes drilling, you do not know what resource lies beneath until the well is down,” Mr Uliel said. “That said, there are many aspects of the drilling campaign which everyone associated with Challenger Energy should be proud of. In particular, we did what we said we would do. Despite many challenges and numerous setbacks along the way, we eventually drilled the well, thus meeting our core objective of testing the structures at the chosen drilling location......” Looking to Challenger’s future in The Bahamas, he added: “It is worth noting that whilst Perseverance One may not have resulted in the commercial discovery we hoped for, a substantial amount of data and learning has been obtained from the drill. We are still integrating all of this information, but it provides encouraging support for the possibility of a deeper Jurassic oil play. “As I have observed in other forums, we had hoped for ‘instant gratification’ with Perseverance One, which was not the case. However, it is important to remember that in our industry several exploration wells are often required before the potential of a frontier basin is unlocked, and based
THE TRIBUNE Thompson only learned in 2013, when she visited Ms Rolle at Munroe & Associates, that her case had been thrown out and there was nothing more to be done. Mr Munroe, though, denied taking Mrs Thompson’s file with him when Lockhart & Munroe broke up. He added that Munroe & Associates only took over the case on November 23, 2011, and said was never her attorney but merely supervised the junior attorneys with responsibility for the matter. Backing Mr Munroe’s evidence, Justice Charles said it was “astonishing” for Mrs Thompson to assert he was her attorney despite never meeting him apart from the community meeting. “The short answer is that, by the time Munroe & Associates took over the 2008 action on 23 November, 2011, the writ was already unrevivable,” Justice Charles found. “It seems clear to me that when the writ in the 2008 action expired and the action became statute barred, Lockhart & Munroe was still the attorney of record..... The relevant question is not who represented Mrs Thompson at the time when the 2008 action was struck out but rather ‘which firm was negligent?’ In other words, which firm failed to do the things that caused the 2008 action to be struck out? The short answer is Lockhart & Munroe.”
on what we have learned from Perseverance One, we continue to believe that our licences in The Bahamas are prospective. “We have thus shifted our focus to the future of this project: Renewing the licences into a third, threeyear exploration period, and securing a partner - ideally a large industry player - to provide expertise and capital for the next phase of activity.” However, Challenger’s financials make clear that it needs another $15m in financing over the next 12 months to meet all its obligations with some of the bills incurred in drilling Perseverance One yet to be paid. “ “On March 24, 2021, the group reported that the final cost of the Perseverance One exploration well, following extensive drilling delays due to equipment failures and additional unforeseen costs relating to COVID-19 management protocols, was approximately $45m, representing an additional $10m than originally anticipated,” Challenger said. “The group has entered into a series of agreements with the suppliers to the well for structured payment plans over the course of 2021 in order to facilitate the orderly settlement of these liabilities.” Challenger also reaffirmed it has relinquished its fifth and northernmost Bahamas licence, adding: “In June 2021, the group notified the Government of The Bahamas that it did not intend to have further discussions regarding renewal of the Miami licence area, against which capitalised costs totalling $0.4m are being held as at 31 December 2020. “As this development represents a non-adjusting post balance sheet event, the group will impair these costs in full in the financial statements to 31 December, 2021.”