Revised Laws of Saint Lucia (2021)

Schedule 6

(Section 4)

PART A
COUNCIL OF BAR ASSOCIATION

1.   Council to be executive of Bar Association

The Council shall be the governing and executive body of the Bar Association and shall exercise and perform such functions, duties and powers as are imposed or conferred upon it by this Act or any other enactment.

2.   Constitution of Council

The Council shall consist of—

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   (a)     the immediate past President of the Bar Association if he or she is resident in Saint Lucia; and

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   (b)     elected members comprising—

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      (i)     officers of the Bar Association, and

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      (ii)     ordinary members,

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   who shall be citizens of Saint Lucia.

3.   Officers of the Bar Association

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   (1)   The officers of the Bar Association shall be the President, the Vice-President and the Treasurer who shall be elected at the same time as the ordinary members in accordance with paragraph 5 and the Secretary who shall be appointed by the Council as soon as it is constituted from among the ordinary members.

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   (2)   Subject to paragraph 2, every practitioner member of the Bar Association of more than 10 years standing shall be eligible for election as President, Vice-President or Treasurer.

4.   Ordinary members

The ordinary members of the Council shall comprise of—

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   (a)     two practitioner members, each of whom shall be of 10 years or more standing on the day of his or her nomination for election to the Council;

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   (b)     four practitioner members, each of whom shall be of less than 10 years standing on the day of his or her nomination for election to the Council; and

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   (c)     all Queen's Counsels.

5.   Elections to be held every 2 years

Elections shall be held every 2 years in accordance with this Schedule and any rules made thereunder for the election of President, Vice President and Treasurer of the Bar Association and the ordinary members of the Council.

6.   Closing date for nomination

In the month of January in the second year after an election, the Council shall publish in the Gazette and in any other manner which it deems expedient so to do, the closing date for nomination of candidates for election to the Council.

7.   Candidate's consent to be obtained

Every nomination of a candidate for election to the Council shall be in writing signed by not less than 5 practitioner members and shall name only one candidate whose consent shall be endorsed on the nomination.

8.   Date of election and the publication

Election of members to the Council shall be held as soon as practicable after the month of March in the second year after an election, but the names of the candidates nominated shall not be published before 1 April in that year.

9.   Ballot voting

Voting shall be by ballot.

10.   Election to offices

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   (1)   A person may at the same election be a candidate for 2 or more of the offices of President, Vice-President, Treasurer and ordinary member of the Council.

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   (2)   The election to these offices shall be determined in the order in which the offices are mentioned in subparagraph (1).

11.   Equality of votes

In the event of an equality of votes between candidates, the one to be declared elected shall be determined by lot in such manner as may be prescribed.

12.   Names of members of new Council to be published in Gazette

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   (1)   The names of the members of the new Council shall be published in the Gazette.

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   (2)   On the date of such publication the new Council shall be deemed to have been constituted and its members to have taken office.

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   (3)   On that date, the terms of office of the members of the previous Council shall expire.

13.   New Council

Subject to this Act, all members of the Council shall hold office until the coming into office of a new Council under paragraph 12.

14.   Filling of vacancies

If a vacancy arises in the office of an elected member it shall be filled in one of the following ways—

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   (a)     where it arises less than 6 months after a member took office, by a by-election; and

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   (b)     where it arises 6 months or more after the member took office, by the appointment by the Council of a person qualified for election to the office.

15.   Presiding at meetings of Council and Association

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   (1)   The President of the Bar Association or, in his or her absence the Vice-President of the Bar Association shall be the chairperson of the Council and the Bar Association and shall preside at all meetings of the Council or the Bar Association.

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   (2)   In the absence from a meeting of both the President and the Vice-President of the Bar Association, the members present shall select one of their members to preside at that meeting.

16.   Appointment of officer due to illness, etc

Subject to paragraph 15, where for any reason an officer of the Bar Association is unable to carry out his or her functions under this Act, the Council shall appoint a member from among the elected members of the Council to act in his or her place.

17.   Vacation of office of statutory members

A statutory member of the Council shall vacate his or her office if—

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   (a)     his or her name is struck off the Roll or he or she is suspended from practising as an attorney-at-law;

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   (b)     he or she becomes bankrupt or is insolvent;

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   (c)     he or she becomes of unsound mind; or

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   (d)     he or she resigns his or her seat on the Council.

18.   Vacation of office of elected members

An elected member shall vacate his or her office in any of the circumstances specified in paragraph 17 and shall also vacate his or her office if—

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   (a)     being elected under paragraph 5, he or she ceases for any reason to have in force a practicing certificate; or

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   (b)     he or she is absent from 3 consecutive meetings of the Council without its consent.

19.   Quorum of Council

Six members present at a meeting of the Council shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of any business.

20.   Out-of-pocket expenses to be paid to members

No fees shall be paid to any member of the Council but a member may be reimbursed from the funds of the Bar Association for out-of-pocket and travelling expenses incurred by him or her in relation to the affairs of the Bar Association.

21.   Annual General Meeting

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   (1)   The Council shall convene an Annual General Meeting which shall be held on or before 31 March in each year and shall cause to be prepared and presented to the Annual General Meeting—

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      (a)     a report on the activities of the Bar Association; and

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      (b)     proper accounts, duly audited, of all funds, property and assets of the Bar Association,

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   for the year terminating on 31 January preceding such Annual General Meeting.

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   (2)   The Auditor shall be appointed at each Annual General Meeting.

22.   General Meeting

The Council may convene a Special General Meeting of the Bar Association at such time or times as the Council deems expedient.

23.   Fifteen practitioner members can requisition general meeting

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   (1)   Any 15 practitioner members of the Bar Association may at any time requisition a Special General Meeting by written notice signed by them stating the objects of the meeting and served on the President, Vice-President or Secretary of the Bar Association.

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   (2)   The Council shall convene a Special General Meeting to be held within 30 days of the service of the notice.

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   (3)   If the Council fails to convene a Special General Meeting within the time required by subparagraph (2), the requisitioning members may convene that Special General Meeting within 60 days of the service of the Notice.

24.   Chairperson to have casting vote at general meeting

At every General Meeting, every practitioner member present shall have one vote and the person presiding at that meeting shall have a casting as well as an original vote.

25.   Management of Association to be vested in Council

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   (1)   All such powers, acts, or things which are not expressly authorised, directed or required to be exercised or done by the Bar Association at a General Meeting under this Act may, subject to this Act or any rules made thereunder or any resolution passed by the Bar Association in General Meeting, be exercised or done by the Council.

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   (2)   No resolution of the Bar Association passed under subparagraph (1) shall invalidate the previous exercise of any power or the previous doing of any act or thing by the Council which would have been valid if such resolution had not been passed.

26.   Council to have power to make rules

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   (1)   The Council shall have power to make rules to provide for all matters not expressly reserved for the Bar Association in General Meeting (whether the same be expressed to be among its power or not) and for all such things as may appear to it to be necessary or desirable for carrying out its functions under this Act or any other enactment.

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   (2)   Despite the power conferred under subparagraph (1) the Council may make rules on any of the following matters—

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      (a)     the manner of nominating candidates;

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      (b)     the manner of communicating to members the names of the persons nominated for election;

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      (c)     the form of nomination paper and the ballot paper;

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      (d)     the times at which the various steps in an election are to take place;

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      (e)     the mode of voting; and

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      (f)     the number of practitioner members (not being less than 30) to constitute a quorum at a General Meeting.

PART B
CONSTITUTION OF FIRST COUNCIL

(Section 4 (2))

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   1.   Until the First Council is constituted and a person is appointed to perform the functions of Secretary of the Bar Association, the Registrar shall perform these functions and shall be responsible for making arrangements for constituting the first Council and for holding elections for this purpose.

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   2.   If any difficulties arise in applying any of the provisions of Part A of this Schedule to the constituting of the first Council, the Attorney General may issue directions modifying these provisions so far as may appear to him or her necessary or expedient for removing the difficulty, and the Registrar shall for the purpose of constituting the first Council apply these provisions as modified by the Attorney General.