Accountant wants Dominica opposition leader declared bankrupt

Chartered accountant Kieron Pinard-Byrne, has instructed his legal team to petition the courts to declare Dominica opposition leader Lennox Linton, bankrupt in a long-running libel matter.

Pinard-Byrne stated that he instructed his attorneys earlier this week to proceed with the matter since, according to him, UWP leader Linton has not responded to an earlier bankruptcy notice served on him.

In a letter served at his home on 23 August, Linton was told to pay almost £26,000 (US$35,290) to Kieron Pinard-Byrne within seven days or he would have “committed an act of bankruptcy in respect of which bankruptcy proceedings may be taken against you.”

The sum was the final judgment delivered on 27 April 2017 after a Privy Council appeal.

“So as he has failed to comply with the bankruptcy notice, I have as of Monday instructed my legal counsel to proceed to petition the court for his bankruptcy.”

He stated the law is very clear on the matter.

“The law is fairly settled on this matter, either he is bankrupt or is not bankrupt and may the chip [sic] fall where they may."

The matter centres around the Layou River Economic Citizenship Program and the Layou River Hotel project.

It goes back over a decade, when Pinard-Byrne sued Linton in 2002 over an article he published on a website and statements made about the same programme on a radio show.

In his suit, Pinard-Byrne said he was libelled by Linton.

The matter went through the local courts, to the Eastern Caribbean Court of Appeal and finally to the Privy Council, which ruled that Linton did libel Pinard-Byrne.