A German television crew has been in Nassau this week to highlight an investor's eight year wrangle with local lawyers over what he claims is their mishandling of a property dispute.
Their report is due to be broadcast by satellite in January to an estimated 15 million viewers throughout Europe.
The man at the centre of the row is German investor Harald Fuhrmann, who claims The Bahamas legal profession and government have turned deaf ears to his plight.
Now his case is to be used for a programme which will spotlight the advantages and disadvantages of investing in The Bahamas.
tTe alleged slackness and incompetence of some Bahamian lawyers is expected to feature in the programme which will be seen from Scandinavia to Southern Spain.
German television journalist Holger Senft told The Tribune: "The programme will basically be about Bahamas tourism, but we will also feature Mr. Fuhrmann's difficulties as a man who invested in a vacation property in Nassau.
"In the programme we will tell why Mr. Fuhrmann comtinues to keep this matter running even though it dates back several years."
The programme will be broadcast by Munich based RTL-2, which reaches 1.5 million peple in Germany but 10 to 15 times more than that in other parts of Europe.
Tourism Minister Obie Wilchcombe has been approached for an interview on the tourism aspects of the programme and Herr Senft said he would also be trying to interview officials of the Bahamas Bar Association.
Mr. Fuhrmann's dispute centres on a holiday property in Nassau.
He claims he stands to write off a $480,000 loss if he fails to get justice.
In complaints to the Bahamas Bar Association, he has cited instances of alleged inefficiency and tardiness by certain lawyers.
He has also been involved in arguments over fees.
Mr. Fuhrmenn claims he has lost many thousands of dollars in telephone calls and airline tickets as a result of the case.
He has been obliged to fly from Germany to nassau on several occasions for meetings, he said.
Yesterday he told the Tibune that his various appeals to both the government and the legal profession had fallen on deaf ears. He felt that he had been ignored in his efforts to get his problem addressed.
He said he did not appreciat the "primitive attitude" displayed by Bahamian authorities.
"It seems to me that some Bahamian lawyers delay action on cases involving foreign investors because they feel they will eventually get fed up and go away," said Mr. Fuhrmann.
"But I am not the kind of man who goes away. I will keep going. I don't want to be ignored."
Mr. Fuhrmann has been carrying on a sustained web site campaign against the Bahamas' legal profession.
In a web site titled "The Bahamas – America's Bad Neighbour" he accuses some lawyers of treating foreign investors "like stray dogs."
He claims the inefficiency of some Bahamian lawyers is having a seriousimpact on the country's dealings with foreign investment.
In open letters to both Prime Minister Perry Christie and Attorney General Alfred Sears, Mr. Fuhrmann urges greater concern for public rights and accuses lawyers of "ignorance" in their dealings with foreigners.
The Tribune
