Crawford brothers lose land-for-legal-fee case

Ryan Crawford

Attorney Ryan Crawford and his brother have been denied their attempt at ownership of some 100 acres of land, which they claimed had been given to their deceased father who was a lawyer, by a client in lieu of payment.

High Court Judge Damone Younge in a ruling delivered on Monday, pointed out that the Crawford siblings failed to substantiate their claim that such an agreement had existed between their father and the owner of the land, who they said owed their father legal fees. Highlighting that this was material to their application for declaration of title to the land in dispute, Justice Younge revoked an order made by the Commissioner of Title.

Further, she ordered the brothers to pay $75,000 costs to the son of the owner of the land,  who had filed the case against the Crawfords.

Subramannie Madray, in his capacity as administrator of his father’s estate, brought the court action against Curtis Ryan Crawford and Marcel Crawford Jnr. His contention was that contrary to the claim they made, there never existed any right entitling them to any part of his father’s land.