PHILIPSBURG:--- The legal community in Sint Maarten is shaken by a disciplinary complaint filed against a Senior Attorney who verbally assaulted a client on the steps of the Joint Court of Justice.
The complaint, filed by Mr. Terence Jandroep (the Claimant and Covid Survivor), is of unprecedented severity because a Court Registrar Staff Member irrefutably witnessed the attorney's unprofessional conduct.
IRREFUTABLE PROOF: OBLIVIOUS TO THE LAW
The core of the complaint states that the attorney, during a confrontation on Wednesday, completely abandoned professional decorum and aggressively accosted the Claimant.
- No Prior Contact: It is critical to note that the Claimant and the Attorney had no prior relationship and had never met before this sudden incident, underscoring the Attorney's immediate, unprovoked professional contempt.
- The Unseen Official: The moment of misconduct was witnessed by a Court Registrar Staff Member who was opening the Court's glass door right next to the attorney. The Attorney was so consumed by his anger that he overlooked the Judicial Official. This occurred on Wednesday, the 22nd of October at approximately 13.25.
- The Quote: The attorney allegedly uttered the final, contemptuous words: “I have nothing to discuss with you. I don't like you,” in a fit of rage.
This level of professional blindness and loss of control transforms the disciplinary complaint from an allegation into an established fact of contempt for the institutional setting.
The attorney’s firm was hired by St. Maarten Medical Center (SMMC) to represent the organization in a long-standing liability case as the “second” legal counsel.
THIRD COMPLAINT AND THE CULTURE OF EXCLUSION
The complaint gains a compounding and systemic nature due to two highly damaging elements:
- Disciplinary Pattern: The attorney is the third legal professional from the same prominent European Dutch law firm established in Sint Maarten to face disciplinary action in a short period. This suggests a severe failure of internal oversight and of the firm's ethical culture.
- Cultural Claim: The Claimant asserts that the attorney’s behavior stemmed from a ‘Discomfort’ with his Afro-Caribbean ethnicity. This is underscored by the fact that the mentioned law firm structurally lacks minority Partners in Curaçao and Sint Maarten, raising the suggestion that the SMMC’s legal representation originates from a homogeneous, elite circle (also known as the OLD BOYS Club) that fails to show respect for the island’s diverse population.
EXPLOSIVE CONFLICT OF INTEREST REVEALED: SMMC COMPLICITY
Adding a critical layer of institutional corruption, it has been revealed that a Partner in the attorney's law firm (First Counsel in the case from Curacao) also serves as the Dean of the Bar Association in Curaçao.
This structural arrangement creates a profound conflict of interest and suggests a potential strategy to prevent or neutralize disciplinary prosecution. Worse, SMMC was fully aware of this conflict-of-interest evidence and knowingly fueled this corrupt setup by retaining the firm to safeguard its “Protective Custody” Status.
This turns the matter from simple misconduct into institutional complicity in attempting to bypass the legal oversight process. The immediate intervention of the Minister of VSA (the political body overseeing SMMC) is now crucial to neutralize this deeply rooted corrupt arrangement and protect the integrity of the government.
The Claimant has issued an ultimatum to the SMMC and the law firms: suspend the attorney immediately, or face further institutional action.
CALL FOR IMMEDIATE ACTION
This scandal places enormous pressure on the integrity of the legal profession and the accountability of public institutions. We demand immediate action:
- Ministerial Intervention: The Minister of VSA must immediately intervene to order the SMMC to terminate both firms' mandates and accept the settlement to mitigate the political fallout from this confirmed corrupt setup.
- SXM Dean of the Bar (Deken): Dean Barry must act swiftly and decisively. Given the irrefutable witness, the pattern of disciplinary failure, and the structural corruption, a Suspension for the attorney is considered the only proportionate punishment necessary to safeguard the integrity of the Bar Association.
- SMMC Board: The SMMC must immediately distance itself from these law firms. Retaining legal counsel associated with institutional arrogance and proven misconduct is politically untenable and damages public confidence in healthcare.
- The Court of Justice: The Court has already taken appropriate action by placing the Claimant’s case on the roll for a Hearing with unprecedented speed. This demonstrates that the Court acknowledges the gravity of the situation and seeks to resolve the chaos.
- Independent Public Inquiry and Claimant Protection: An independent inquiry led by external investigators must review the Bar Association’s handling of complaints in Curacao, the SMMC’s conflict-of-interest arrangements, and the wider culture of exclusion within the legal sector. Immediate protection must be granted to the Claimant and all witnesses, preventing intimidation, retaliation, or procedural manipulation during the investigation.
The Colombian-educated Risk Analyst has exposed the corruption of the elite. It is now up to the responsible authorities to prove that the Rule of Law applies to everyone in Sint Maarten.
