COULD THE GOVERNMENT FINANCIAL REGULATOR BE FOUND LIABLE IN NEVIS' HAMILTON RESERVE BANK LITIGATION? WILL THEY?

The targeting of the Nevis Branch of the Federation's FINANCIAL SERVICES REGULATORY COMMISSION, its banking regulator, in the litigation by depositors of Hamilton Reserve Bank, may come as a surprise to many readers, but given the anger of the victims, who are being given weak excuses by the bank for the failure to return their money, it is understandable.

Granted that, under English Common Law, upon with St.Kitts laws are based, recovery of claims against financial institutions through regulators for negligence is rarely granted, but the argument that gross negligence was present, when the FSRC ignored solvency issued at Hamilton, and freely allowed it to continue to advertise for new clients, may prevail. Additionally, evidence surrounding the role that Nevis Premier MARK BRANTLEY played in the approval of the bank's charter could have a material impact upon the decisions in the litigation; there are a number of cases pending in the High Court in Nevis. We will be analyzing both the pending and completed cases in future articles, so that our readers can more fully understand the course of the litigation.