Sir Fenton Ramsahoye,
QC,
SC (20 May 1929 – 27 December 2018) was a
Guyanese lawyer
A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters.
The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...
and
politician
A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...
who served for over twenty years in
Antigua and Barbuda
Antigua and Barbuda is a Sovereign state, sovereign archipelagic country composed of Antigua, Barbuda, and List of islands of Antigua and Barbuda, numerous other small islands. Antigua and Barbuda has a total area of 440 km2 (170 sq mi), ...
.
Education
Ramsahoye studied at
London University
The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degr ...
where he was awarded B.A. in 1949 and LL.B., LLM in 1953 and 1956. He was called to the bar at
Lincoln's Inn
The Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn, commonly known as Lincoln's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court (professional associations for Barrister, barristers and judges) in London. To be called to the bar in order to practise as a barrister ...
on 10 February 1953 and was awarded Ph.D. in Comparative Land Law from
London School of Economics and Political Science
The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), established in 1895, is a public university, public research university in London, England, and a member institutions of the University of London, member institution of the University ...
in 1959.
Career
Ramsahoye was at the forefront of the independence movement. In 1961 he was elected a
Member of Parliament of
Guyana
Guyana, officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern coast of South America, part of the historic British West Indies. entry "Guyana" Georgetown, Guyana, Georgetown is the capital of Guyana and is also the co ...
and remained in parliament until 1973.
He was
Attorney General of British Guiana from 1961 to 1964 and a member of Board of Governors of University of Guyana from 1962 to 1964. In 2006, he held the record for making the most appearances before the
Judicial Committee of the Privy Council
The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC) is the highest court of appeal for the Crown Dependencies, the British Overseas Territories, some Commonwealth countries and a few institutions in the United Kingdom. Established on 14 August ...
in the
Caribbean
The Caribbean ( , ; ; ; ) is a region in the middle of the Americas centered around the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, mostly overlapping with the West Indies. Bordered by North America to the north, Central America ...
.
[Antigua and Barbuda Government News](_blank)
/ref> Ramsahoye was appointed Senior Counsel in Guyana in 1971. From 1972 to 1975 he was Deputy Director of Legal Education for the Council of Legal Education in the West Indies and head of Hugh Wooding Law School
The Hugh Wooding Law School (HWLS) is a law school in Trinidad and Tobago.
History
Named for Trinidad and Tobago jurist and politician Hugh Wooding, HWLS is one of three law schools empowered by the (Caribbean) Council of Legal Education to a ...
as a professor.[
Ramsahoye was a ]Queen's Counsel
A King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) is a senior lawyer appointed by the monarch (or their Viceroy, viceregal representative) of some Commonwealth realms as a "Counsel learned in the law". When the reigning monarc ...
and a member of the bars of England and Wales, Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago, Barbados, Jamaica, the Territories of the Eastern Caribbean including Montserrat, and the British Virgin Islands.[ He was knighted in 2006 by Governor General Sir ]James Carlisle
Sir James Beethoven Carlisle, GCMG (born 5 August 1937) is a dentist and the former Governor-General of Antigua and Barbuda. Selected by Vere Cornwall Bird (the country's first prime minister), his term ended in June 2007, after 16 years in offic ...
during a ceremony at Government House in Antigua.[
]
Personal life
Ramsahoye married Phyllis Gwendolyn Lutz, the daughter of Richard Benjamin Lutz of South Australia
South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories by area, which in ...
.
He died in Barbados
Barbados, officially the Republic of Barbados, is an island country in the Atlantic Ocean. It is part of the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies and the easternmost island of the Caribbean region. It lies on the boundary of the South American ...
on 27 December 2018 at the age of 89.
Publications
*''The Development of Land Law in British Guiana'' Oceana Publications, New York, (1966)
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ramsahoye, Fenton
1929 births
2018 deaths
Lawyers awarded knighthoods
Alumni of the London School of Economics
Members of Lincoln's Inn
20th-century Guyanese lawyers
Guyanese Senior Counsel
Attorneys-general of British Guiana
Members of the National Assembly (Guyana)
Government ministers of Guyana
Guyanese expatriates in Antigua and Barbuda
20th-century King's Counsel
21st-century King's Counsel
21st-century Guyanese lawyers