Monrovia – In less than six days after a petition to restore the law license of Cllr. Charles Gibson, Minster of Justice-designate, was filed with the Supreme Court, it is reported that the high court has granted the petition.
Report by Bettie K. Johnson Mbayo, [email protected]
When Cllr. Gibson was appointed as Minister of Justice-designate, he had no license and could not practice in any court in Liberia.
His suspension was based on findings from the Grievance and Ethics Committee for misappropriating US$25,322.00 from a client.
“Counsellor Charles H. Gibson be, and is hereby suspended from the practice of law directly and indirectly in Liberia for the period of two months.”
The committee reports show that the proceedings started from a 2013 final judgment rendered by the Debt Court for Montserrado County, awarding the complainant, GECCO represented by its President, Mr. Anwar Saoud the amount of US$286,200.00 (Two Hundred Eighty-Six Thousand, Two Hundred United States Dollars) against the Global Bank Liberia Ltd.
At the hearing on Thursday at the high court he was asked why he took so long to adhere to the court’s order.
He attributed the delay in payment to not having adequately funds, “I was constrained and was not working, and some friends had to help me get the money to pay back.”
Chief Justice Francis Korkpor then told him, “Know that you will be serving as the Dean of the Supreme Court if you are caught in this kind of situation what do you think will be the perception of the public about the Court?”
Gibson pleaded with the Court to tender justice with mercy, “I’m sorry for the situation and I beg the court to tender justice with mercy.”
Gibson’s petition before the Court was filed on January 17, 2018, while the payment of the money was done on January 9 of this same month.
In his petition, Cllr. Gibson stated that the two-month suspension has been served and the US$25,322.00 paid to the complainant thus requesting the high court to restore him to his professional status as Counsellor-at-Law of the Court.
“I’m determined and committed to upholding and abiding by the code of conduct of lawyers and that Your Honor and this Honorable Court will look favorably upon petitioner’s petition in order to put this matter to rest,” he pleaded in his petition to the court.
The Justice Minister-designate requested the Court to restore his license as a practicing lawyer and to enable him pursue his professional career.
The crux of the complaint was that GECCO had authorized Cllr Gibson to receive the installment payments in satisfaction of the final judgment of the Debt Court and that he, Cllr. Gibson retains 20 percent on each installment payment collected as compensation for his legal services.
The complainant also alleged that it agreed with Cllr. Gibson that upon receipt of the last installment payment in the amount of US$31,653.33 and after deduction of his 20 percent legal fees, he (Cllr. Gibson) should remit the balance to Counselor Johnny Momoh, who at the time was within the employment of the Sherman & Sherman, Inc., for onward transfer to a named beneficiary, Mr. George Koussa; but that upon receiving the last installment payment Cllr. Gibson failed to honor the agreement and instead retained possession of the entire amount of US $31,653.33 and that all efforts asserted to retrieve same from him proved futile.
Some social media users stressed that President Weah’s pledge to battle corruption must begin with the integrity of those he appoints.
They added that the Attorney General or Justice Minister, who is expected to prosecute corruption and other crimes against the state, cannot be found in such unethical dealings.
On Wednesday of this week, Cllr. Gibson paid a visit to the Ministry of Justice prior to the turning over of keys by the former Minister of Justice, Cllr. Frederick Cherue.