Legal Profession Bill expected before Cabinet ‘early next month’

Attorney General Wilfred Abrahams (File Photo) The most wide-ranging overhaul in a half-century of the law governing the legal profession is expected to go before Cabinet for approval by early next month, Attorney General Wilfred Abrahams indicated on Monday. The final draft of the bill to update the Legal Profession Act would be shared with the Barbados Bar Association on Monday for its input, with a 14-day period in which to respond, he told Barbados TODAY in an interview. “I can tell that I am in possession of a draft of the Legal Profession Act. This touches and concerns the Bar in a way that most Acts don’t. We normally consult with the Bar on landscape-changing legislation; and this is particularly so with respect to the Legal Profession Act. “We have had previous consultations with the Bar, but we are pretty much in our final drafting stages; So, I plan to forward it to the Bar today for their input, before we send it to Cabinet for approval.” Abrahams explained that, because the bill is hundreds of pages long, the Bar was being afforded the two-week period to review it and have its say. “It is an extensive bill. The bill is over 200 pages long. So, I am giving them 14 days to make their comments. But as I said, we have had extensive consultations previously, but as we are now in the final stages, you measure twice and cut once,” the attorney general added. You Might Be Interested In Sir David Simmons is chairman of the Legal Reform Commission, which drafted what he described as “an entirely new bill” and submitted it to the government late last year. He told Barbados TODAY earlier this month that the legislation would address a wide range of issues, including the controversial stealing of clients’ money by attorneys-at-law. While it proposes a reduction in the process to which convicted attorneys are subjected in order to be struck off the register, there is no change to the “natural justice procedure” of having the right to challenge disciplinary decisions before the Court of Appeal, he said. During a two-day symposium held in June last year by the commission at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre, Sir David said the new legislation reflected legal, constitutional and societal changes that have unfolded over the past 52 years. Major proposed reforms include the creation of professional legal companies; a framework for continuing legal education and development; new accounting and compliance rules; and permission for attorneys to advertise their services. Sir David noted that the bill was not imposed without consultation, revealing that, following a year-long internal review, the Bar submitted a Table of Proposed Amendments and a report. He further pointed out that the commission adopted the vast majority of the recommendations. The former Chief Justice also warned that some parts of the bill, especially those involving accounting and CLE, would require adequate staffing and support. He advised a phased rollout to avoid overwhelming the system. The bill would replace the 1973 Legal Profession Act, enacted when there were only 192 practising attorneys in Barbados. That number has swelled to 900 today, with roughly 40 more expected to be called to the Bar this year. (EJ)