The first major international event of the New Year was devastating. Just miles north off the coast of Haiti, two ferocious earthquakes rocked the Haitian homestead destroying its infrastructure and taking the lives of many of its citizens and visitors. The impact of the natural disaster was so tremendous that even the residents of the island of Inagua, our closest island to Haiti felt the earth move from the distant tremors.

As The Bahamas stood in astonishment as word of a nationwide tsunami watch echoed over the radio waves, the mere possibility that the Bahamian national would now find themselves in the same pair of shoes as the Haitian citizen had harmoniously crept into the common state of mind. Stories of Haitians being paid in cans of soup for landscaping services and the merciless robbing of hardworking Haitian migrants that walk the streets of Nassau, not to mention the many ethnic slurs that have become a part of the local lingo are hardly anything new. For a brief moment the culprits facing the moral reprisal for inhumane and discrimination breathed a heavy sigh of relief as pictures of caved in buildings and the rubble of the nation’s presidential palace and the Haitian slums slowly streamed into the local news stations.

The announcement made by Bahamian Prime Minister of the release of Haitian immigrants held in the Detention Centre and the grant of temporary resident status is one small illustration of the global impact shown by this natural disaster. Perhaps a more significant example is the vast amount of charity displayed by various governmental, corporate, and charitable groups throughout the eastern and western hemisphere. The Bahamas is no exception as one can witness the large variety of groups on the streets, asking for donations in order to help mend the fractured city.

With the unforeseen occasion to line the pockets of opportunists who use kindness as a commercial element, ordinary wisdom begs for the exercise of vigilance for those who wish to help the nation of Haiti see their way to a better future as disastrous events tend to find their way into the hands of callous opportunist who wish to line their purses under the cloak of charity. Before trusting your hard earned wages into the hands of cunning jackals, we would advise that you take the following precautions in order to prevent your charity from going to waste:

Verify the authenticity of the organization before making a donation…

Corporate documents of the organization should be registered in the designated corporate registry of your country, and should be available for your perusal. Licenses should be available at the physical location of the charity (if you don’t have time to visit your local corporate registry) and should verify that the organization is fit for accepting charitable donations. Conducting an internet search is perhaps the most efficient way of verifying an organizations’ authenticity.

Don’t be afraid to ask questions…

Especially when corporate documents aren’t available for review. You should also inquire about how your donation will be used to assist the victims of disaster. Watch out for general responses, as charitable organizations usually send their donations to a particular group within the disaster area. It is also wise to make donations directly to known organizations rather than relying on a third party to make donations on your behalf.

Do not provide any personal or financial information…

Personal or financial information should not be required by personal who solicit charitable contributions. Such information can be used to commit identity theft.

Ask for a receipt…

Receipts are also a good way to show proof of payment, and should be requested every time you make a charitable contribution.

Be Very Skeptical…

Especially when making donations via the internet or telephone. Emails requesting charitable assistance may be spam email, and it is not wise to respond to the email, clicking on links provided within the email, or opening files attached to the email.

Report suspicious activities to your local police station…

With the large amount of con artists using the Haitian crisis as a cover for their fraudulent activities, notifying your local police station of suspicious activities will send a direct message to any other swindlers. You would also be able to claim for donations made during the fraudulent act.

Always remember that it is always good to support a charitable cause. And it is even better when you know that your money will be put to good use.

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Just one of many beautiful islands in the archipelago…

Enjoy

Through combining debt collection tactics along with traditional court litigation, LEX JUSTIS has proven itself to be one of the more popular and successful debt collection services in the Commonwealth of The Bahamas.

DEBTOR ASSET INVESTIGATIONS & COURT DOCUMENT SERVICE

Whether you are a local or foreign individual or company we will locate and make provision to execute service of all relevant court documents to the prospective debtor, no matter where the individual works or resides. Through using strategic methods including utilizing the services of dedicated private investigators and members of the Royal Bahamas Police Force, we have been very successful in locating and executing service of court summons and delivering debtors to the Magistrate and Supreme courts of The Bahamas. Strategies such as preliminary investigations in order to determine the debtor’s place of residence, place of occupation and other community- based areas, while special attention is vested in detailed asset searches which assists the court in determining how the debtor will repay the debt owed.

PRELIMINARY SETTLEMENT STRATEGIES

Prior to filing any court documents we offer the Debtor an opportunity to avoid unnecessary legal cost and embarrassment by proposing a preliminary settlement. Once a Debtor is located a demand letter, which sets out debt owed, legal fees and a preliminary offer a settlement, is served. In most cases our investigators are able to obtain a telephone contact in order for our agents to establish communications with the debtor in order to facilitate payment.

ACCEPTANCE OF SETTLEMENT

Should the debtor agree to settle the debt with our court intervention, agreements are made with the debtor to sign a Promissory Note which sets out the total sum owed (including legal fees) along with payments arrangements (whether weekly, bi-weekly or monthly). The first installment is paid along with the execution of the Promissory Note in order to show proof of the debtor’s willingness to abide by the agreement. In normal circumstances, payments are not allowed to extend for more than 8 months, however clients are invited to assist in negotiating a payment plan. Further encouragement is provided by offering reduced legal fees payable by the debtor. Should a default of the terms of the Promissory Note occur, the debtor is served with a Writ of Summons and court proceeding are indicated efficiently and effectively.

NON-ACCEPTANCE OF OFFER OF SETTLEMENT

In some cases, debtors may not accept the preliminary offer of settlement due to their belief that they are not liable for monies owed and wish to be heard in front of a judge, However unless they do have a legally void agreement, informal preliminary court hearings may be conducted by the presiding Judge in order to avoid longer court proceedings. Should the debtor fail to adhere to the Judgment Order a warrant for arrest may be provided by the judge in order to enforce the debtor to make payment. Other options are available, such as placement of liens on property owned by the debtor, legal confiscation of property, bankruptcy, proceedings, etc may be available to recover debts owed. Nevertheless our goal is to provide early recovery of debt in the least expensive methods possible.

POSITIVE COMMUNICATION AND PAYMENT COACHING

Having been involved in debt collection service in the Bahamas for a number of years our collection agents are experienced collectors who know how to effectively persuade debtors making the satisfaction monies owed to our clients a priority. Our philosophy concerning the recovery of assets is simply, “to alleged debtors as respective human being, without and indication of possible vindictive motives herd.” In most cases debtors are working class professionals who have not been able to financially adjust to challenging circumstances, most of which tremble at the thought of appearing in a Magistrate Court, or even the sight of a demand letter.

Our agents are very aware of the stress and emotional strain by local debtors and rather than taking the traditional aggressive tone and nagging-like methods of forcing the debtor to pay (which has proven to be more successful in making debtors change their telephone contacts or avoiding a collector’s phone calls) our Practice partakes in a more positive and motivating approach, often using methods such as further discounts in legal fees in order to encourage the debtor to satisfy the debt owed.

Simply put we actively participate in the ongoing negotiation with debtors in order for them to remain committed to paying their debt. Often times our agents develop long term relationship with debtors and provide helpful advice in money management and other simple financial coaching methods. More importantly we also consider debtors as clients and exercise exceptional customer service in order to achieve the goal and expectations is the implicit relationship between client and debtor.

SERVICE FEES, ETC.

Contact our offices today to find out more about initial retainer fees, and fees associated with asset searches and investigations involving the whereabouts of prospective debtors in the Bahamas.

Mario L. McCartney [esq.], B.A [Hons], LLB [Hons.] practices as Founder and Principal of the Chambers of LEX JUSTIS, a boutique law practice in Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas. While presently engaged in general legal practice, Mr. McCartney’s specialty lies in debt recovery and offshore financial and corporate services, and is currently registered as a Compliance and Anti-Money Laundering Reporting Officer (CMLRO) for his Chambers. Mr. McCartney is also the present editor and main contributor of LEX JUSTIS blog site and welcomes all opinions and comments to his articles.

For further information on all legal services provided by Mr. McCartney please visit the LEX JUSTIS website @ www.lexjustis.com or email him at mmccartney@lexjustis.com, mario.l.mccartney@gmail.com.