Following various efforts by former Executive Director of NICIL, Winston Brassington to garnish the almost $40 million in damages he has won in judgments against the Kaieteur News (KN), the newspaper has finally agreed to voluntarily pay off the outstanding balance of some $18 million.
Brassington had already received some $20 million which he garnished from a bank account belonging to Kaieteur News through appointing a receiver to recover from the income and/or capital assets of the newspaper in order to satisfy judgments awarded.
Advancing financial constraints primarily caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, owner of the newspaper Glenn Lall, through his attorney Christopher Ram had made pleas for a chance to pay the outstanding balance of some $18 million in installments.
Senior Counsel Timothy Jonas, who represents Brassington, however, rejected the $2 million monthly installment proposed by Ram on behalf of his client.
Jonas instead made a counter-proposal of $6 million monthly; asking the court for the garnishee proceedings and the appointment of a receiver to be stayed until all outstanding sums are paid in full.
Lall, however, indicated through his lawyer that given the constraints of the pandemic on his business, sales, cash-flow limitations and part of the business being on borrowed funds, he could not afford the sum Jonas had proposed.
As a result, Justice Nareshwar Harnanan who presided over the case instructed the parties to lay over written submissions on the newspaper’s application for part payment and Brassington’s application for the appointment of a receiver and a garnishment order to recover the outstanding sums.
When the matter was called for ruling on Thursday, however, the Court was informed by Lall’s attorney that the Publisher will immediately pay all outstanding balances after garnished sums are accounted for.
Brassington has won a number of lawsuits against the Kaieteur News for defamatory statements it published about him back in 2014.
As recently as August, he was awarded $2 million in damages, which is the lowest of the amounts he has been previously awarded in similar actions he brought against KN, Lall and former editor Adam Harris.
Back in February of this year, he was awarded $10 million and mere months before, in September of 2020, he was awarded over $18 million.
He had been awarded various amounts prior.
