Jagdeo moves to CCJ over $20M judgment libel case

Sep 07, 2023 Court Stories, Features / Columnists, News

Kaieteur News – Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo has moved to the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) in a bid to appeal a $20 million default judgment determined against him in a libel suit brought by Opposition Member of Parliament (MP), Annette Ferguson.

Vice President, Bharrat Jagdeo

Opposition MP, Annette Ferguson

Ferguson, a former Minister of Housing, had on January 9, 2020 filed a GY$25 million lawsuit for libel purportedly committed by Jagdeo when he was Opposition Leader. The High Court had issued a default judgment on March 11, 2023 because he had failed to defend himself. He is seeking an overturn of the decision by the CCJ. Jagdeo had previously appealed the decision at the lower appeal court. He was unsuccessful.

In an application filed on his behalf by Attorney Devindra Kissoon, the VP requested that the CCJ determine his case. “I am entitled to leave to appeal to the Court of Appeal and remit this matter to the Court of Appeal for a hearing of the intended appeal, or alternatively treat this application as the hearing of the appeal itself and vacate the default judgment rendered,” he said.

Justice Sandra Kurtzious’ had awarded GY$20 million to Ferguson. As such, Jagdeo is also requesting that the CCJ suspends Justice Kurtzious’ award of damages and costs until they hear and determine his appeal. The VP said he believes that the learned judges of the Court of Appeal fell into error when they found it had no jurisdiction to adjudicate on an appeal from a divided Full Court, they found that a divided Full Court decision is not appealable since it was not a decision, or alternatively they refused to interfere with the Full Court’s refusal to recall its order and remit the matter for a fresh hearing before three judges.

“Not only do I have a real prospect of success given the Court of Appeal obvious errors of law, but this appeal concerns a point of law of general public importance, there being an egregious error of law the Court of Appeal’s erroneous determination that it has no jurisdiction to hear an appeal from a divided Full Court, which if allowed to remain on the record, will foreclose litigants from having a right to appeal the legal effect of a divided Full Court decision,” he said in his application.

More importantly, the VP believes that there has been a substantial miscarriage of justice. “I have been deprived of an opportunity to appeal the propriety of the Default Judgment issued against me, I being left without a remedy and no further appellate recourse.

Alternatively, he contends inter alia that the threat of imminently having a money judgment entered against him but more importantly, having indelibly on the record a finding that he defamed the respondent, which is will have a damaging and long-lasting impact on my political career and in the eye of the public. “If the Court does not grant the Orders sought… I would be deprived of the ability to defend the Claim on its merits and my constitutional right to appeal, and the Court would be sanctioning the draconian imposition of a default judgment despite the overriding objective and the real prospect of success on my part,” Jagdeo proffered in the application.