Next Generation Partners

Dispute resolution in Bahamas

Higgs & Johnson

Higgs & Johnson’s ‘great, innovative team’ is consistently active in the jurisdiction’s largest cases, acting for a variety of local and international clients at all court levels up to the Supreme Court. The practice is particularly well regarded for its expertise in cross-border litigation, banking and financial services claims, and insolvency and employment disputes; it also fields distinct teams for asset recovery work, trust litigation and tax cases, and is increasingly active in arbitration proceedings. Tara Archer-Glasgow leads the department and attracts effusive praise from clients, who single her out as ‘a smart litigation lawyer, who is punctual, concise and well organised, with a great personality’. Further key names in the practice include team deputy chair Karen Brown, who excels in employment law; senior partner Philip Dunkley KC and firm co-managing partner Oscar Johnson, Jr. KC; ‘great lawyer with great judgementTara Cooper Burnside KC, who was appointed King’s Counsel in 2023; and Leroy Smith, who specialises in trust and estate litigation. Keith Major and Rhyan Elliott are the key names at senior associate level.

Practice head(s):

Tara Archer-Glasgow


Other key lawyers:

Karen Brown; Philip Dunkley KC; Oscar Johnson, Jr. KC; Tara Cooper Burnside KC; Leroy Smith; Keith Major; Rhyan Elliott; Audley Hanna


Testimonials

‘A great, innovative team – on top of the law.’

‘Tara Burnside KC – great lawyer and great judgment.’

‘There are two members with whom I interact most often – Tara Archer-Glasgow and Audley Hanna. Tara has very ably represented our interests, she is very responsive, and is very assertive and confident in her approach. Audley’s deep understanding of local labour laws is impressive and as such he has been able to guide us to avoid mistakes and avoid litigation without compromising our policies.’

‘Tara Archer-Glasgow: smart litigation lawyer, who is punctual, concise and well organised, with a great personality.’

‘The responsiveness we have received is bar none.’

‘Rhyan Elliott is thorough, very responsive and meets deadlines – that combination is a rare find within the legal fraternity and is a factor that places him and Higgs & Johnson at the forefront of the list of Bahamian Legal Service Providers utilised by my company.’

‘They are responsive and they care!!!!’

Lennox Paton

Lennox Paton’s domestic and international client base, which includes financial institutions, multinational corporates, private individuals and government entities, instruct the firm on complex and high-stakes litigation. The firm has recently been representing the joint provisional liquidators of FTX Digital in various cases arising from the collapse of the FTX crypto exchange; Sophia Rolle-Kapousouzoglou is leading the case, while practice head Brian Simms KC was recently appointed as provisional liquidator of FTX Digital Assets. Other key names in the group include Marco Turnquest, who appears regularly before the Supreme Court; newly appointed Kings Counsel Christopher Jenkins KC, who focuses on property litigation; and family specialist Metta MacMillan-Hughes KC. Chizelle Cargill is also a key name to note, along with active associate Valdere Murphy.

Practice head(s):

Brian Simms KC


Other key lawyers:

Sophia Rolle-Kapousouzoglou; Marco Turnquest; Christopher Jenkins KC; Metta MacMillan-Hughes KC; Chizelle Cargill; Valdere Murphy


Key clients

FTX Digital Markets Ltd


Hot Pancakes Limited


CS&P SA


Baron’s Court Holdings Ltd.


Clico Bahamas Ltd


Bettas Ltd


AML Foods Ltd


Sky Bahamas Limited


Sandals Resorts International Ltd


UBS Bahamas Ltd


Work highlights


  • Acting as joint provisional liquidators of FTX Digital Markets Ltd.
  • Acting on behalf of Hot Pancakes Limited and CS&P SA, a Cyprus and Panamanian company respectively, in legal proceedings concerning a dispute over $30m in frozen funds held in an account at Ansbacher Bank, a Bahamian bank.
  • Acting for Bettas Limited in a multi-million dollar breach of banking mandate claim against HSBC.

McKinney, Bancroft & Hughes

The ‘very professional and knowledgeable’ practice at McKinney, Bancroft & Hughes excels across the spectrum of contentious work with experience before the Supreme Court and the Privy Council. The group is particularly noted for its commercial and trust disputes expertise as well as insolvency and restructuring knowledge and is able to handle multi-jurisdictional mandates. Senior partner John Wilson KC leads the department and is also active in the firm’s trust and private client practice. Elsewhere in the team, Sean Moree KC is praised as ‘responsive, efficient and quite the all rounder’, Timothy Eneas KC focuses on property litigation, and Genell Sands handles insurance and personal injury claims. Kevin Moree is the key contact for tax disputes, and Erin Hill is the primary name at senior associate level.

Practice head(s):

John Wilson KC


Other key lawyers:

Sean Moree KC; Timothy Eneas KC; Genell Sands; Kevin Moree; Erin Hill; Andrew Smith


Testimonials

‘The team and McKinney, Bancroft & Hughes is very professional and knowledgeable. They have assisted us immensely in navigating the legal challenges we were faced with.’

‘Sean Moree KC stands out as very responsive, efficient and quite the all rounder as a litigator. Kevin Moree is very strong technically on his core areas. Erin Hill is very professional in her approach.’

‘The exceptional individuals at McKinney Bancroft & Hughes set themselves apart with their expertise and personalised service. Among these remarkable team members, Genell Sands stands out for building her ability to create a strong client-attorney relationship. She is accessible and goes the extra mile to comprehend clients’ values and cultural nuances. This personalized approach ensures her guidance is not only legally sound but also profoundly aligned with her clients’ ethos.’

‘We certainly appreciated the services of Andrew Smith who is very innovative in his approach to dealing with legal matters. He is timely and communicates clearly and effectively in a way that we can fully grasp the concepts and counsel he is providing.’

‘Roster of people available to assist our point of contact, great resources to research case references.’

‘Knowledgeable, engaged and truly brilliant in laying out and executing on the litigation strategy.’

‘We receive timely reports on the progress of matters and are given options as how we wish to proceed. The strength of this firm is each partner can draw on the expertise of other partners in the firm even if those partners are not directly involved the particular case at hand.’

‘One of the strengths of working with Genell Sands is that she provides a very personal touch to her service and, 95% of the time, the required result is achieved in the settlement of any matter. She is never too busy to discuss matters and is always easily accessible.’

Key clients

The Private Trust Corporation limited


Ansbacher (Bahamas) Limited


EFG Bank & Trust (Bahamas) Limited.


Butterfield Trust (Bahamas) Limited


Windermere Island North Development Limited


Adlard Holdings Limited


FirstCaribbean International Bank (Bahamas) Ltd.


Pictet Bank & Trust


Bamont Trust Company


RAV Bahamas Ltd.


BB Entertainment Ltd.


J. S. Johnson & Company Limited


Qamea Stanley Limited


Work highlights


  • Representing the joint official liquidators of one of the largest construction companies in The Bahamas in all aspects of the winding up proceedings.
  • Advised a Bahamian trust company in dealing with requests for information from FTX itself and the SEC involving a critical assessment of the validity of requests from US companies in bankruptcy and the US SEC.
  • Defending Pictet Bank & Trust Limited, one of the largest private banks in The Bahamas, in an action commenced by Monte Leone Arbitrage Fund Ltd (SAC) and ML Arbitrage Advisory Limited.

Delaney Partners

For Delaney Partners, key recent areas of activity span restructuring and insolvency work, commercial, trusts and estates litigation, and financial services and regulatory mandates; the practice is also active in alternative dispute resolution and fraud and asset recovery work. John Delaney KC heads up the practice, which also fields Robert Adams KC, who has experience at all court levels up to the Privy Council; restructuring and insolvency specialist Lena Bonaby; and barrister Edward Marshall, who handles corporate, employment and real estate litigation.

Practice head(s):

John Delaney KC


Other key lawyers:

Robert Adams KC; Lena Bonaby; Edward Marshall