In a release announcing the move to the City, managing partner Colin Callender said that with the “increasing globalisation of trade” and the importance of London, their clients needed the assurance of a London presence to augment and back up the work being done in their offices here in The Bahamas.
“Law firms must now offer a transnational and intercontinental service to maintain the confidence of their clients and in keeping with our policy of expansion, London was the obvious first choice for Callenders & Co,” Mr. Callender stated.
Senior litigation partner Michael Scott said he was “delighted” to have premises in Temple Chambers, on Temple Avenue. He explained that the location was close to the Commercial Court. “Heavy commercial litigation, especially arising in large insolvencies, is now a multi jurisdictional undertaking for law firms and a London office had become essential for us to maintain the level of service offered to our international clients,” Mr. Scott explained.
He noted that the office ideally positioned the firm to develop a “network of professional relationships”.
“I would also emphasise that London is ideally suited as a base for the development of the firm’s network of professional relationships, targeting both Eastern Europe and the Far East, notably China, the emerging economic superpower of Asia,” he said. “We regard global outreach as a vital part of the firm’s vision for growth in the 21st century.”
Commenting on the impact the move would have on the Nassau office Mr. Scott concluded his remarks stating that he looked “forward to a much enhanced level of cooperation between London and Nassau especially in the expanding financial services sector, both in litigation and at the transactional level.”
The move demonstrates that Bahamian service providers can no longer confine themselves to the safe and comfortable boundaries of “home court”. Callenders is the second Bahamian law firm to establish a presence in London. Lennox Patton has had a presence in London for nearly five years now.
As Bahamian law firms continue to take advantage of opportunities in key financial centres and also to meet the demands of globalisation, the pressure to open up the Bahamas legal profession to the presence of non-Bahamian law firms will grow. Brian Moree, Senior Partner at McKinney Bancroft & Hughes has been espousing the advantages of such a development but so far has found himself to be the proverbial ‘lone voice’ in the wilderness.
The Nassau Guardian
