CALLENDERS-LAW.COM - Key Persons
Mr. Leonard has served on the Bahamas Government Airport Advisory Board, the Blue Ribbon Commission on National Health Insurance, the Steering Committee of the National Development Plan and has, most recently, been appointed to the Air Transport Advisory Board. He is a former president of The Bahamas Chamber of Commerce, where he lifted the ban on Sunday Shopping, and a former lecturer for the Bahamas Bar Association on Conveyancing.
For his dedication to conveyancing and real estate law, Roberts has been honoured twice by international observers. Corp INTL named him the recommended Bahamas real estate attorney. Global Law Experts honoured him by naming him a leading corporate law expert.
Courtney Pearce is an investigator at heart. The more multi-layered a case may be, the more determined she is to get to the centre of it. In
Doneth Cartwright received her Law degree from the University of Technology in Jamaica with First Class Honors and a Legal Education Certificate with Eugene Dupuch Law School. She came to the practice of law after nearly a quarter of a century in the insurance industry witnessing how much of a difference it made to the ease of clients' results when their affairs were in order and they were prepared, not just with coverage but within a legal framework.
"Insurance contracts and insurance claims, and the law are closely linked. I saw firsthand over and over how critical it was to have affairs in order whether it was a matter of a personal injury claim or the ability to access benefits following a loved one's death," Mrs. Cartwright said. Estate Planning has made the difference between families who fought bitterly and those who continued to grieve the loss of a loved one together. She also saw the absence of a proper will creating problems for the loved ones of the deceased.
Born in Jamaica, Mrs. Cartwright rose to the top of her insurance field as a Vice President of Sales. In 2012, she transferred her skills to the Bahamian market but also realized a growing passion for the field of Law. In The Bahamas, she completed the legal education she started in Jamaica. Having married a Bahamian, Mrs. Cartwright moved with deliberation to contribute to the community. She is a member of the Rotary Club of Nassau Sunrise.
"Practising with lawyers at Callenders who are so dedicated to their clients' matters, and the wealth of resources afforded to the team to enable their success is the most inspiring feeling in the world. You do not notice the late nights and long hours because you know you are making a difference in human lives," says Mrs. Cartwright who in addition to being a member of the Jamaica Bar, holds an MBA in Finance from Manchester Business School, UK, and a Certificate in International Arbitration from the Miami Law School. She is a member of the Caribbean Institute of Arbitrators (CIArb) and CIArb Bahamas Chapter.
Her areas of specialization include Arbitration, Estate Planning and Probate, Insurance, Family Law including divorces and adoptions, Human Rights Law and Civil Litigation. She is the newest member of the growing Callenders team.
Frederick R.M. Smith, KC is the Senior Partner of Callenders and the Managing Partner of the Freeport, Chambers. He has an active civil trial and appellate litigation practice in Human Rights, Environmental, Constitutional, Regulatory and Commercial matters. Mr. Smith also specializes in transactional matters in Freeport under the Hawksbill Creek Agreement.
Education:
He was born in Haiti where he had his primary education. His secondary education was in Nassau and at boarding school in Giggleswick in the North of England. He graduated from The College of Law in London, England and was called to The Bars of England & Wales (Lincoln's Inn) and The Bahamas in 1977.
Job Titles:
- Associate
- Callenders As an Associate
- Member of the New York Bar
Garth Philippe, a member of the New York Bar, the Bahamas Bar and former advisor to the United Nations, is a multi-lingual attorney fluent in English, French, Spanish and Dutch specializing in financial services.
Ian Cargill Jr. began his pupilage at Callenders in January 2021 when presented with an opportunity to learn from ‘one of the best litigators in the country' in the person of Frederick Smith, KC.
"I appreciate the type of work that is done here and it's a good thing, when in a small country like The Bahamas, you have someone hold the government accountable, particularly in cases where there is a breach of the constitutional rights of any person," Cargill says. While human rights and constitutional law are areas he's fond of, he's chosen banking as the area he's most excited about.
After a stint at the Central Bank of The Bahamas where he was introduced to the principles of banking, Cargill embarked on his undergrad studies in Economics because in his words, ‘money controls everything'. In an effort to understand how to analyze money and people's behaviour towards money, he simultaneously minored in philosophy of law. With his interest sufficiently piqued, the young man who walked in his father's footsteps to become an attorney, set his sights on attending law school and the lifelong pursuit of determining how the law confines the use of money.
Education:
Ian obtained a Bachelor in Economics with a minor in Philosophy of Law, cum laude, from St. John's University, New York. He earned a Bachelor of Laws with Upper Second Class Honours from City, University of London and was awarded the subject award in Contract Law Honors. He received a Master of Law in Banking with a focus on money laundering and ant terrorist financing and completed his Bar Practioner Training Course with distinction both at City, University of London. He was called to the Bahamas Bar in June 2021.
Lester Mortimer has been called the chief navigator of Callenders & Co., helping international clients wend their way through a maze of regulators and government obstacles, rationalizing the processes to facilitate prospective developments ranging from resort-related projects to providing services in The Bahamas including ship and project financing.
"The regulatory process for government approvals can be daunting," says Mortimer, one of a small number of attorneys in The Bahamas designated Kings Counsel (KC), having been recommended for the same for his knowledge of the law.
Mortimer rattles off bureaucratic complexities that sound like alphabet soup - BIA, NEC, URCA, FIB - steps investors must take in order to operate in a virtual world or break ground in the physical environment. Among his specialties - the ever-changing intricacies of governmental policies. "We examine a proposed project thoroughly and determine whether it is straightforward or which regulatory approval would be required, the availability of concessions, what the employment opportunity is and in the end, what benefits it will bring to The Bahamas. It is easier to move through the system if the government of The Bahamas is eager for the project and believes it will truly benefit the country."
Colleagues in the firm call him an encyclopedia. He maintains a nearly half century of fascination with the law because of its ever-evolving nature.
Called on by local and international courts as an expert in Bahamian law, Mortimer has served on numerous committees, including the Judicial & Legal Service Commission, the Rules Committee of the Supreme Court, the Constitutional Review Commission and the Bahamas Bar Council.
Job Titles:
- Senior Associate
- Callenders Associate
Mr. Malone has been involved in the education arm of the Bahamas Bar Association's Junior Bar Committee where he organized seminars for continuing education in the areas of employment law, bail, preparation and prosecution of appeals. He has also guest lectured at the Eugene Dupuch Law School and the University of The Bahamas, where he is an approved Adjunct Lecturer. His lectures have covered public law matters (including environmental law and judicial review) as well as preparation of skeleton arguments, and trial advocacy. He has also served as a member of the Bahamas Bar Association's Ethics Committee for a number of years. He presently serves as the Chairman of the Subdivision and Development Appeal Board (which hears and determines appeals arising from decision made under the Planning and Subdivision Act) as well as an Instructor in the Paralegal Studies Course at the Eugene Dupuch Law School.
"You can learn something new every day and still not know everything about the law," says Morgan-Gomez who specializes in Commercial Litigation involving Employment, Insurance, Insolvency, Trusts, Agency and Multi-jurisdictional Contracts.
Morgan-Gomez joined the firm as a Senior Associate in 2011 and was named partner in 2013.