Former Grenada Prime Minister Dr. Keith Mitchell will have to pay EC$130, 000.00 to former Congress Sports Minister Patrick Simmons after he lost a libel case brought against him.
Attorney-at-law Alban John who represented Simmons in the case confirmed to THE NEW TODAY that the judgment was delivered Monday in favour of his client by high court judge Justice Raulston Glasgow.
John said he could not give much details as he has not received a written copy of the judgment from the high court judge.
The case stemmed from claims made by Dr. Mitchell that Simmons as a member of the Cabinet used privileged information to rush and purchase lands in Hope, St Andrew to make a financial bonanza because the University of the West Indies (UWI) had committed to building a facility in the area.
The senior Congress minister asked Dr. Mitchell, the longstanding Political Leader of the New National Party (NNP) to withdraw the statement as it was false and misleading but the Grenadian leader refused to do so.
Former government minister Pauline Andrew confirmed in court papers that Simmons had purchased the land several years before the UWI initiative had surfaced.
Simmons then retained attorney-at-law John to institute legal proceedings against the island’s longest-ever serving Prime Minister.
Dr. Mitchell was represented in the court proceedings by attorney Nigel Stewart, the husband of former NNP Minister of Legal Affairs Kindra Maturine-Stewart.
THE NEW TODAY has not been able to confirm reports that the ex-Grenadian leader put forward a proposal to pay Simmons monthly installments of EC$2000.00 to pay off the judgment but it was rejected by the high court judge.
About 5 years ago, Dr. Mitchell had declared his net worth at EC$19 million before the Integrity Commission.
It is the second crippling blow delivered against Dr. Mitchell within the past year by Justice Glasgow.
Weeks before the June 23, 2022 general election, the senior judge ruled against Dr. Mitchell and his regime and in favour of the Public Workers Union (PWU) in their battle for payment of pension in keeping with the Grenada Constitution.
After weeks of debating whether to challenge the ruling before the Court of Appeal, Dr. Mitchell told Grenadians that there would be no appeal of the judgment.
The pension issue was a major factor in the outcome of the election with thousands of public officers deciding to cast their vote in favour of Congress and its new leader Dickon Mitchell which committed to paying the pension.
Within 5 months of taking office, PM Dickon Mitchell kept the promise with the first roll-out of millions in pension payment to several hundred retired public officers.
Editor’s Note: The lawyer representing Dr. Keith Mitchell in this specific case brought against him by former Sports Minister Patrick Simmons was top Trinidad criminal defense attorney Lawrence Ramesh Maharaj and not local attorney-at-law Nigel Stewart.
 We regret any inconvenience caused to Attorney Stewart who has represented Dr. Mitchell in other court matters.