Category:
LEGAL BISCUITS
http://www.lexjustis.com/2012/04/the-9-trillion-dollar-loophole/
http://www.lexjustis.com/2010/09/annual-fee-scales-for-work-permit-applications/
Some time ago we published a short article about work permit applications in The Bahamas. In updating this popular commentary we have included the most recent fee scales for those entities interested in applying for a Bahamian work permit for foreign employees. ‘Fee Scales’ are mandatory government fees charged to employment positions that are grouped according to the similar nature and functions shared within the group.
The Department of Immigration has provided a list of categorized professions and employment positions, all of which can be found here. For those succumbed to the restriction of time we have provided a summarized version of the annual fee scales below:
- Scale 1 (B$12,500.00): Reserved mainly for corporate executives such as Chief Financial Officers, Presidents, and Managing Directors. Project Managers are also included in this category.
- Scale 2 (B$9,000.00): This fee scale is mainly comprised of self-employed white collar professions such as Doctors, Accountants, Lawyers, Engineers, Bankers, etc., as well as upper level supervisory positions such as Branch Managers, Office Managers, and Maitre D’s. For local resorts and hotels you will find director positions such as Director of Activities, Director of Laundry Services, and Director of Security, will be included in this scale.
- Scale 3 (B$7,500.00): You will find most supplemental supervisory positions such as Accounts Officers, Assistant Managers, Estate Managers, and Personnel Officers to be included in this category. Other self-employed positions such as Pharmacists, Physiotherapist, dental hygienist, agronomist, and chemist are also included in this scale. Trust and Financial service positions such as Trust Officers, Trust Administrators, and Treasury Assistants can also be found under this scale.
- Scale 4 (B$6,000.00): This category is reserved for a wide variety of job positions. You will find a wide range of ‘assistant based’ positions such as Administrative Assistants, Assistant Bar Managers, Assistant Analyst, etc., along with a variety of positions associated with air and sea transport operations such as Air Traffic Controllers, Aircraft Mechanics/ Technicians, Helicopter Pilots, Airline Pilots, Boat Captains, etc. Technical based positions such as, Computer Technicians, Ultrasound and X-Ray Technicians are also included in this fee scale along with employed professions such as Cosmetologists, Barbers, Beauticians, Nurses, and School Principals/ Headmasters are also included in this category. This group also includes ‘construction based’ positions such as Building Inspectors, Construction Foremen/ Supervisors, Air-Conditioning, Plumbing and Electrical Supervisors/ Foremen, Sheet Metal Works Foremen, and Explosives Technicians are also included. Travelling Salesmen, Real Estate Salesmen, Tour Representatives, and other similar positions are also included in this category.
- Scale 5 (B$5,000.00): Similar to the 4th fee scale listed above, with a greater variety of job positions. Construction positions such as Skilled Labourers, Welders, Tile Layers, Window Dressers, etc., are contained in this fee scale along with professions such as Carpenters, Mechanics, Electricians, and Heavy Equipment Operators. In the hotel industry positions such as Butlers, Bartenders, Hotel Managers (for hotels containing 100 – 199 rooms), and Assistant Housekeepers (for hotels containing 300 – 400 rooms) can be found in this category along with other self-employed professions such as Nannies, Masons, Musicians, Entertainers, Bus and Truck Drivers, and Masseuses are also included in this category.
- Scale 6 (B$4,000.00): This short category contains employed positions such as Dental Assistants, Bakers, Cooks, Diving Instructors, along with Hotel Managers (for hotels containing 50 – 99 rooms), Head Storekeepers. Teachers are also included in this category.
- Scale 7 (B$3,000.00): Resort and Hotel positions such as Head Gardeners, Bell Captains, Waiters and Front Desk Clerks are placed in this category, along with Typists, Tailors, Oilers, Upholsters and similar self-employed professions. Employed positions such as Receptionists, Tellers, Mechanic/ Auto Body Repair Helpers, Cashiers and other similar positions have been placed in this fee scale.
- Scale 8 (B$1,000.00): This group comprises of General Workers, Gardeners, Janitors, Construction Helpers, and other similar positions. Live-in Maids and other unskilled positions (not previously mentioned in other fee scale categories) are also included.
- Scale 9 (B$500.00): This category is reserved for farm laborers employed by “active registered farmers”.
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Mario L. McCartney is the Founder and Principal of LEX JUSTIS, a boutique law firm providing Corporate, Private Client, and Traditional legal services in the Commonwealth of The Bahamas. Mr. McCartney is also the present editor and main contributor of firm’s 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. | |
http://www.lexjustis.com/2010/08/increased-stamp-duty-charged-on-real-property-conveyances/
There have been a number of noteworthy legislative changes this 2010 year, the most significant of all being the increase in stamp duty to be paid in real property conveyances in The Bahamas. The amount of stamp duty charged is based on the purchase price of the property and can be paid by either the vendor or purchaser, or can be shared equally between the parties involved in the transaction. The new stamp duty rates are:
| Land Value | Stamp Duty |
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$0 – $20,000.00 |
4% |
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$20,000.00 – $50,000.00 |
6% |
|
$50,000.00 – $100,000.00 |
8% |
|
$100,000.00 – $250,000.00 |
10% |
|
Greater than $250,000.00 |
12% |
You can find these amendments in our previous article entitled EXPECTED CLOSING COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH REAL ESTATE TRANSACTIONS IN THE BAHAMAS.
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Mario L. McCartney is the Founder and Principal of LEX JUSTIS, a boutique law firm providing Corporate, Private Client, and Traditional legal services in the Commonwealth of The Bahamas. Mr. McCartney is also the present editor and main contributor of firm’s 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. | |
http://www.lexjustis.com/2010/03/just-a-moment-for-freeport/
Inhabitants of Grand Bahama were caught off guard yesterday (29/03/2010) when a lethal tornado ransacked portions of the island. Three people have been reported dead and several others injured who were employed at the Freeport Container Port. Already plagued by a sluggish economy and two deadly hurricanes further infrastructural damages have occurred, this time causing damages to at least 6 container cranes and a number of buildings. Without a doubt the infrastructural injuries to the container port will operate at a reduced capacity which may also result in reduced wages for its workers. And as the political fingers find their way to find fault, lawyers secretly dabble with words such as ‘foresight’, ‘causation’, ‘remoteness’ and other legal gobbledygook.
Sadly, fortune seems to have walked away from the country’s second major city, with hotel closures, high unemployment levels, and manufacturing companies opening and closing due to the island’s elevated energy costs. Low lying areas of the island have been prone to constant storm surges and flooding, and every year the island’s inhabitants brace themselves for the hurricane season more so than those living in the central and southern islands. Rest assure however, when they figure out how to kick start the island’s industrial engines you will be sure to see a more prosperous report roaring out of the future Caribbean tiger.
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http://www.lexjustis.com/2010/03/on-the-escrow-crisis%e2%80%a6/
As if the reputation of the Bahamian lawyer has not suffered enough, according to this report by the Nassau Guardian, the former President of the Bahamas Chamber of Commerce suggests that local banks should establish facilities for funds intended to be held in escrow, the suggestion made on the ‘rise in court cases involving money held in escrow and the lawyers tasked to oversee it’. This crisis is seen primarily in commercial transactions in which monies paid expenses are held in escrow by attorneys representing both parties, who are held responsible for making the appropriate disbursements to the vendor and supplemental expenses attached to the property (i.e. stamp duty fees, real property tax, utilities).
Traditionally, local attorneys have held monies in escrow in order to ensure that the appropriate disbursements are made prior to payment, and in order to ensure that their legal fees are paid for the all necessary services provided for the transaction. In dealing with any legal action or commercial transaction, clients should either receive notice of the intended disbursement from their attorney, or obtain a summary of all expenses to be paid (i.e. commercial transactions).The use of escrow funds other reasons apart from the benefit of the client however, is a serious breach of fiduciary duty held by the attorney and will normally lead to disciplinary actions exercised by the Disciplinary Committee of the Bahamas Bar Association.
Ultimate control of an escrow account however, may exist in circumstances whereby the attorney and client become joint signatories to a designated account, the arrangements of which can be made by the local bank or financial institution. This ensures the complete communication and review of the disbursements made between an attorney and a local client, but may prove more tedious for foreign clients, and unacceptable by attorneys from larger law firms. Foreign clients who hold concern for funds held in escrow by a local attorney for commercial transactions should speak to their attorney to determine whether separate payment of the consideration for the property and payment for expenses (i.e. government fees, legal fees, etc.) could be paid separately and directly to the respective parties. The attorney may agree to this, save for the direct payment of the deposit, which would be required to be held in escrow by the attorney in order to ensure that legal fees are paid. Bear in mind that there are no set rules concerning escrow arrangements between the client and their legal representative.
The suggestion of local banks and financial institutions providing an escrow facility may prove to be beneficial, but issues of confidentiality, ‘institutional red tape,’ and increased risk of third party liability automatically become immediate hurdles for this kind of service. Perhaps the call for greater swift disciplinary penalties for dishonesty and fiduciary negligence are a better suggestion for this concern.
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Mario L. McCartney is the Founder and Principal of LEX JUSTIS, a boutique law firm providing Corporate, Private Client, and Traditional legal services in the Commonwealth of The Bahamas. Mr. McCartney is also the present editor and main contributor of firm’s 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. | |
http://www.lexjustis.com/2010/03/citizens-arrest/
Last Thursday the Tribune reported the brazen performance of a shot gun wielding driver who trapped two men in their vehicle after suspecting one of them of being the culprit of a previous hit and run incident (you can view the report here). Surely the event reminds you of a heart pounding scene from your favorite action packed movie, but in actuality a fine example of an act of arrest made by an ordinary citizen, commonly known as “citizen’s arrest”, the power of which is granted by Section 103 of the Penal Code (Ch.84).
According to this section, any person may arrest and detain another person who has committed a felony, and may use any force which is necessary for his arrest, detention or recapture (even kill him) if he cannot by any means otherwise be arrested, detained or re-taken. In using necessary force, the accused must have notice or believe that he is accused of a felony avoids arrest by resistance, flight, or escape from custody. For this reason, it seems as if the heroic citizen who bore witness to the hit and run incident may have acted within the limits of the law.
Perhaps what really brings out excellence in maintaining law and order in The Bahamas is through those that are just fed up with the criminal insurgency that is slowly crippling our island economy. Just maybe, the part of the answer to this stubborn issue of crime in this country lies through more awareness of Penal Code S103, establishing training programs that will serve to properly instruct the average citizen on how to safely and properly arrest an offender without legal ramification. This along with the provision of CCTV technology in all neighborhood subdivisions just may curb the criminal appetite, but certainly action is far better than none at all.
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Mario L. McCartney is the Founder and Principal of LEX JUSTIS, a boutique law firm providing Corporate, Private Client, and Traditional legal services in the Commonwealth of The Bahamas. Mr. McCartney is also the present editor and main contributor of firm’s 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. | |
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