– to enter private practice, take up role as advocate
Chief Magistrate Juliet Holder-Allen yesterday handed in her resignation at the Court of the Appeal after being sent on indefinite leave almost five years ago following allegations of misconduct.
Shortly after leaving the Court of the Appeal building, Holder-Allen said she planned to take action against each member of the Judicial Service Commission (JSC).
“They have no idea who they have been dealing with…” the former magistrate said. She explained that she has opted for early retirement and in another few weeks her former employers would have to discuss her benefits as she has been on the bench for 18 years. “If anyone can change this country it is the lawyers,” she said.
Stating that she has “had enough of this nonsense” the former magistrate said she would now go into private practice. Asked about reports that she was planning to head into politics, Holder-Allen said the politics she would be involve in was advocacy; not joining any political party and campaigning. According to Holder-Allen, while Guyana has a lot of lawyers it is short of advocates.
“Politics is life and life is full of injustices and you must lead from the front,” she said adding that there is no lack of accommodation for her on the political arena.
Earlier this year, the magistrate had said there was no complaint on record as being made against her and called her removal from the bench an attack meant to damage her professionally. She had stated that the complaints were made against her by a few persons including former Chancellor of the Judiciary, Justice Desiree Bernard but over time the complaints were withdrawn. This, she said, meantthat the JSC could not call upon her to answer to anything.
Yesterday she said that the powers that be had their friends make complaiants against her to damage her, but pointed out that there were no complaiants about her capability, competence or morality.
She said the JSC was the same commission which “has been wrecking my life for the last 18 years.” She said Justice Bernard’s complaiant came after she had said that Justice Bernard was trained as a solicitor and she (Holder-Allen) was trained as a lawyer.
“I was just asked by a reporter why myself and the chancellor do not see eye to eye and I said maybe because of our training; she was trained as a solicitor and I was trained as a lawyer,” she said.
Asked if whether by handing in her resignation she had not played into the hands of the same persons she said were out to wreck her career, the former magistrate said she had not done so as she was going to ensure that she got justice.
She recalled that it was stated that the commission could not proceed with the matters against her as she had filed an appeal but noted that she has since withdrawn that appeal and nothing has happened.
The former magistrate also stated that persons had tried to kill her but gave no details about this.
In November 2004, the JSC instituted disciplinary charges against Holder-Allen following allegations of misconduct. These included comments about Justice Bernard in a local publication attributed to Holder-Allen; a statement in the same publication where Holder-Allen allegedly threatened not to resume sittings; a complaint by then Human Services Minister, Bibi Shadick; an allegation by a Ms Duff that Holder-Allen used offensive language in her court and a complaint by another magistrate that Holder-Allen interfered with a decision.
Earlier this year the PNCR made mention of Holder-Allen’s case stating that her fundamental human rights were being violated by politically directed manoeuvres to keep her off the bench. The party said in a statement that there did not appear to be any legal reason for the extended time that she had been kept off the bench, adding that the case represented yet another example of the crude interference with the judicial process.
