Latest update December 25th, 2024 1:10 AM
Feb 21, 2021 News
By Renay Sambach
Kaieteur News – ‘Touting’ is defined as the act to sell something by a direct or persistent approach. In this week’s article, I’ll focus on “Court touts,” what they do, and the fact that the unlawful act continues to flourish in the legal profession.
If you live in the city or have visited the city, you might have had the first-hand experience of ‘touts’ trying to get you to join a bus that they are loading. ‘Bus touts’ are often seen near the various bus parks in the Stabroek Market and other areas, assisting bus drivers to get their buses filled faster.
While this act is illegal, it has grown very prevalent in society, especially among the younger group of men.
Besides the ‘bus touts,’ another form of touts has emerged in the court system – ‘court touts.’ Court touts are somewhat unusual to some since they are different from the touts on the bus park who look for passengers.
Instead of touting for passengers, the court touts look for clients for attorneys-at-law, who they work with. The more customers a court tout provides for an attorney, the larger the pay-out the court tout collects after the attorney is on record to represent that person.
Court touts are considered hustlers since they are being paid more for their services when they help out someone at the court. They are more common at the Magistrate Court level, but it is most prevalent at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.
COURT TOUTS OPERATION
Court touts perform multiple duties at the court. They are friends with lawyers so when someone at the court needs a lawyer, the court tout would recommend a lawyer that he feels is the best fit to handle that particular matter and as such, he would contact the lawyer and give him/her the job and the ‘court tout’ would then be paid for helping out.
The court touts at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts are always well dressed, in their fancy pants and shirts, most times with matching shoes and hats. For decades ‘touting’ has been an offence under the Legal Practitioners Act, and to date, it is still one of the issues that it is faced with due to the increase in the use of court touts to secure cases.
In the morning before court begins and sometimes in the afternoon, ‘court touts’ can be seen outside of the court on the pavement hustling to get customers for the lawyers.
From being at the court, I have observed the way they operate. Often the court tout would stand on the pavement in front of the court and as the numbers at the court increase, they would approach some persons to inquire if they have a matter or if a relative or friend has a matter.
After forming a conversation, in order to find out the person’s reason for visiting the court, the court tout will then ask if the person has already secured legal representation.
If the person confirms that they are without legal representation, the court tout often tells them that they know the best attorney that can assist with the matter or tell them about an attorney that would do the job at a cheaper cost.
Court touts operate at the court on weekdays, and at the main entrance of the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts, there is a sign on the top left of the building. The sign states, “Strictly no touts within the court precincts. Anyone who carries out touting activities will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
It further states that “Anyone who is assaulted, molested or in any way harassed by any other person, must immediately report to the nearest police station. Order by Chief Magistrate.”
TOUTING THROUGH COVID-19
Despite the worldwide pandemic, the change in everyday lifestyle, and the restrictions on certain gatherings and activities. The court touts can still be seen at work in front of the compound of the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.
THE LAW
The Legal Practitioners Act outlines that any person who acts as a tout shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine of $16,250 and imprisonment for six months.
The law also highlights that, “The Registrar shall publish in the Gazette the name of any person who he is satisfied, whether on the evidence of general repute or otherwise, has acted as a tout and shall by such publication declare that person to be a tout.” [Subsection 1]
However, “No person shall be declared a tout by the Registrar under the preceding subsection unless he has been given an opportunity to show cause to the Registrar why such a declaration should not be made with respect to him.” [Subsection 2]
As a result, “The Chief Justice may, by order, prohibit any person declared a tout as aforesaid from entering the precincts of any court except— (a) to attend proceedings to which he is a party or in which he is a witness; or (b) with written permission granted by the Chief Justice and for any purpose specified in such permission.” [Subsection 3]
In the final subsection, it highlights, “Every person who, otherwise than for a purpose mentioned in subsection (3) (the proof whereof shall lie upon him), enters any precincts which he is prohibited under that subsection from entering, shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine of sixteen thousand two hundred and fifty dollars and imprisonment for six months.”
CODE OF CONDUCT
According to Chapter 4:01, an attorney-at-law who is connected with touting or who associates with touts shall be deemed unfit to practice as an attorney-at-law.
The attorneys shall not permit known touts on their premises or in their offices, and an attorney-at-law who becomes aware, or reasonably suspects that a person who, not being entitled to practice as an attorney-at-law or not being a public officer acting in the execution of his duty, for or in expectation of a fee, gain or reward, draws or prepares or offers to draw or prepare any legal document other than a will, shall be obliged to report the same properly to the Bar Association.
Additionally, an attorney-at-law shall not speak derogatorily of another attorney-at-law in good standing; nor shall he, by disparaging remarks or otherwise of another attorney-at-law, seek to attract clients to himself in preference to that other attorney-at-law.
An attorney-at-law shall not solicit retainers or briefs in any manner; nor shall he give any inducement to have his services retained. The attorney shall also avoid giving confident assurance to clients or potential clients as to the results of a case or matter, more especially when his retainer depends on his advising his client or potential client in a particular way.
LAST TOUTING REPORT
The practice of touting has survived and prospered in our courts for decades. In the past, actions were taken to suppress the dishonourable and unlawful practice of touting.
It has been more than 50 years since the last case of touting was reported and brought before the courts of Guyana.
John Leonard was the last person to be charged for touting. He was caught due to a trap that was set up by police. He was found guilty of the offence but in 1971, in a majority decision, the Court of Appeal reversed the decision by the Full Court on the technicality that legal business meant genuine legal business and did not include a trap by the Police.
To prove a case of touting has been proven near impossible. This was despite police had proven beyond doubt that money was paid and it was admitted that Leonard was an employee of an attorney-at-law.
However, reports indicated that the attorney-at-law was not charged because of the law as it was then, and still is…the guilty person was the tout, who was seen as the employee and not the employer, the brain behind the criminal act.
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