- NEWSDAY.CO.TT - A la Une - 18/Jul 20:01

Court to decide on jurisdiction for Cepep lawsuit

A High Court judge will decide in August whether the court has jurisdiction to hear a dispute between a contractor and the Cepep Company. Justice Margaret Mohammed on July 18 set deadlines for both sides to file submissions as Cepep argues the case should first go through the contract’s dispute resolution process, not the court. Cepep’s legal team says Eastman Enterprise Ltd breached Clause 17 of the contract, which requires disputes to be handled through a tiered resolution process before court action. Attorneys, led by Anand Ramlogan, SC, argued the court cannot “reward a party” for ignoring agreed procedures and accused the claimant of trying to bypass mandatory arbitration. The company also alleges its former board was misled into extending 336 contracts, worth an estimated $400 million, until 2029 based on a false claim that Cabinet had approved the move. Cepep says this “fraudulent misrepresentation” led the board to act under a political directive that never existed, and it is now seeking an injunction while investigating possible criminal misconduct. Former Cepep chairman Joel Edwards denies Cabinet approval was ever needed or obtained, calling a board note claiming approval an error he ordered corrected. The company's CEO Keith Eddy, however, said he approved the extensions because he believed Cabinet had given instructions. The Ministry of Finance later confirmed Cabinet approval was needed for a decision of that scale. Cepep has asked the court to pause proceedings while it investigates possible criminal misconduct. The matter reached the court after Eastman first argued Cepep wrongfully terminated its contracts, leaving thousands of workers without pay. Line Minister Barry Padarath said he is seeking legal advice as the dispute unfolds. It was the second lawsuit filed by attorneys connected to the Opposition PNM which has vowed to fight for 11,000 affected workers while denouncing the government’s handling of the situation. On July 8, a lawsuit filed by a company reportedly removed from the Companies Registry was quickly withdrawn. A fresh claim was filed by Eastman Enterprises Ltd, represented by Larry Lalla, SC, St Clair O’Neil and PNM MP Kareem Marcelle. The post Court to decide on jurisdiction for Cepep lawsuit appeared first on Trinidad and Tobago Newsday.