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Solicitor General and Supreme Court Judge swept up in Paul Chen-Young controversy
Mon May 28, 2007
Solicitor General and Supreme Court Judge swept up in Paul Chen-Young controversy
Solicitor General Michael Hylton has rejected claims that his relationship with Supreme Court Judge Mr. Roy Anderson impacted on the outcome of the trial of former Eagle Group head Dr. Paul Chen-Young.
Last week lawyers in the United States representing Dr. Chen-Young submitted documents to a court in Florida arguing that the Solicitor General and the judge were former partners in the law firm Myers, Fletcher and Gordon.
The law firm initially represented the Government in the case against Dr. Chen-Young before Mr. Hylton moved into the position of Solicitor General taking the case with him.
According to Dr. Chen-Young, the Jamaican judgement should not be recognised because it was rendered under a system which did not provide an impartial tribunal.
It was further alleged that Mr. Anderson had been declared bankrupt by a court in New Jersey in 1994 and failed to declare this in his application to become a judge of the Supreme Court.
Against this background, Dr. Chen-Young's lawyers contend that the partners of Myers, Fletcher and Gordon held leverage over Mr. Justice Anderson which would make in unlikely that a person sitting in the courtroom would think the former banker received a fair trial.
Mr. Hylton says the bankruptcy issue in no way impacted on Mr. Justice Anderson’s suitability to sit as a judge of the Supreme Court and did not give the law firm any leverage over him.
The Solicitor General further argues that in the past six years he has lost two of the three cases that have been heard by Mr. Justice Anderson.
Mr. Hylton says the allegations of impropriety were not made when Mr. Justice Anderson was chosen to hear the case nor when the judgement was delivered.
He notes that before the trial began Mr. Justice Anderson declared his former role at Myers, Fletcher and Gordon to the lawyers in the case and they had no objection to him hearing the case.
The Solicitor General charges that this allegation is being made now that it has been discovered that Dr. Chen-Young has substantial assets in Florida and efforts are underway to seize them to cover the one billion dollar judgement against him.
In the meantime, Mr. Hylton has rejected claims that he withdrew his name for consideration as Chief Justice because of the allegations in the Paul Chen-Young case.
In a letter he sent to the Prime Minister which was released on Monday, Mr. Hylton said he withdrew to ensure that a candidate who enjoys bi-partisan support could be selected.
He said four weeks after being consulted by the Prime Minister, the Leader of the Opposition had not indicated his support for the appointment.
According to Mr. Hylton, with the imminent date of the retirement of Chief Justice Lensley Wolfe, he believed that it was best for him to withdraw to allow the appointment of someone who would enjoy the support of both parties.
It has since emerged that Court of Appeal Judge Zaila McCalla is the Prime Minister's choice to replace Mr. Justice Wolfe, who retires next month.
And in the wake of the allegations in the public domain, a lawyer representing Justice Roy Anderson has also come out in defence of the Judge.
In a five-page letter of denouncement, Attorney-at-Law Gordon Robinson sought to set the record straight on what he described as falsehoods, inaccuracies and baseless, defamatory allegations.
The letter written to the Sunday Herald newspaper, among other things said while Mr. Anderson did file for protection under a section of the U.S. Bankruptcy code, he has never been declared bankrupt.
Mr. Robinson also states that Justice Anderson has never been a partner at Myers Fletcher and Gordon and while acting in the capacity of a consultant there he was never involved in litigation.
He stated that his client declared his previous relationship with the law firm which was pursuing the case against Chen-Young and lawyers on both sides had every opportunity to indicate any discomfort with him hearing the case.
The letter went on to say that one of Chen-Young's lawyers at the time was also a previous associate at Myers, Fletcher and Gordon.
Justice Anderson's lawyer described as cowardly the fact that the allegations were being made against him in a Florida court which did not give him a forum in which to officially respond.
Demanding a full apology from the newspaper, he is claiming the allegations damage his client's reputation and spoil his chances of upward mobility in his profession.
Mon May 28, 2007
Solicitor General and Supreme Court Judge swept up in Paul Chen-Young controversy
Solicitor General Michael Hylton has rejected claims that his relationship with Supreme Court Judge Mr. Roy Anderson impacted on the outcome of the trial of former Eagle Group head Dr. Paul Chen-Young.
Last week lawyers in the United States representing Dr. Chen-Young submitted documents to a court in Florida arguing that the Solicitor General and the judge were former partners in the law firm Myers, Fletcher and Gordon.
The law firm initially represented the Government in the case against Dr. Chen-Young before Mr. Hylton moved into the position of Solicitor General taking the case with him.
According to Dr. Chen-Young, the Jamaican judgement should not be recognised because it was rendered under a system which did not provide an impartial tribunal.
It was further alleged that Mr. Anderson had been declared bankrupt by a court in New Jersey in 1994 and failed to declare this in his application to become a judge of the Supreme Court.
Against this background, Dr. Chen-Young's lawyers contend that the partners of Myers, Fletcher and Gordon held leverage over Mr. Justice Anderson which would make in unlikely that a person sitting in the courtroom would think the former banker received a fair trial.
Mr. Hylton says the bankruptcy issue in no way impacted on Mr. Justice Anderson’s suitability to sit as a judge of the Supreme Court and did not give the law firm any leverage over him.
The Solicitor General further argues that in the past six years he has lost two of the three cases that have been heard by Mr. Justice Anderson.
Mr. Hylton says the allegations of impropriety were not made when Mr. Justice Anderson was chosen to hear the case nor when the judgement was delivered.
He notes that before the trial began Mr. Justice Anderson declared his former role at Myers, Fletcher and Gordon to the lawyers in the case and they had no objection to him hearing the case.
The Solicitor General charges that this allegation is being made now that it has been discovered that Dr. Chen-Young has substantial assets in Florida and efforts are underway to seize them to cover the one billion dollar judgement against him.
In the meantime, Mr. Hylton has rejected claims that he withdrew his name for consideration as Chief Justice because of the allegations in the Paul Chen-Young case.
In a letter he sent to the Prime Minister which was released on Monday, Mr. Hylton said he withdrew to ensure that a candidate who enjoys bi-partisan support could be selected.
He said four weeks after being consulted by the Prime Minister, the Leader of the Opposition had not indicated his support for the appointment.
According to Mr. Hylton, with the imminent date of the retirement of Chief Justice Lensley Wolfe, he believed that it was best for him to withdraw to allow the appointment of someone who would enjoy the support of both parties.
It has since emerged that Court of Appeal Judge Zaila McCalla is the Prime Minister's choice to replace Mr. Justice Wolfe, who retires next month.
And in the wake of the allegations in the public domain, a lawyer representing Justice Roy Anderson has also come out in defence of the Judge.
In a five-page letter of denouncement, Attorney-at-Law Gordon Robinson sought to set the record straight on what he described as falsehoods, inaccuracies and baseless, defamatory allegations.
The letter written to the Sunday Herald newspaper, among other things said while Mr. Anderson did file for protection under a section of the U.S. Bankruptcy code, he has never been declared bankrupt.
Mr. Robinson also states that Justice Anderson has never been a partner at Myers Fletcher and Gordon and while acting in the capacity of a consultant there he was never involved in litigation.
He stated that his client declared his previous relationship with the law firm which was pursuing the case against Chen-Young and lawyers on both sides had every opportunity to indicate any discomfort with him hearing the case.
The letter went on to say that one of Chen-Young's lawyers at the time was also a previous associate at Myers, Fletcher and Gordon.
Justice Anderson's lawyer described as cowardly the fact that the allegations were being made against him in a Florida court which did not give him a forum in which to officially respond.
Demanding a full apology from the newspaper, he is claiming the allegations damage his client's reputation and spoil his chances of upward mobility in his profession.
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