Firm Name: Callenders & Co.
Jurisdiction: Bahamas
Practice Area: Constitutional Law
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Professional Biography:
Leaders in Law endorses Frederick R.M. Smith as our exclusively recommended Constitutional Law expert in Bahamas. If you wish to get in touch with Frederick please use the contact information provided above.
The aggrieved could not ask for a better friend, nor offenders a tougher opponent, than Frederick R.M. Smith, QC. Mr. Smith holds a singular place in Bahamian law, a legendary thinker and prolific human rights advocate whose articulate contributions help to shape the national conversation. He is as outspoken a proponent for the rule of law in for-profit commercial enterprise as he is a staunch defender of human, environmental and animal rights.
Examples of his versatility abound. While Mr. Smith has a broad experience in transactional matters under the Hawksbill Creek Agreement, his fame lies in the application of law to environmental and human rights. He fights with equal ardor for the migrant falsely imprisoned as for the utility earning guaranteed profits. As the director of legal affairs for the environmental advocacy group Save The Bays, he has filed actions against large developers for violating the law, showing disregard for the Bahamian environment, displacing cultures, mangroves, and wetlands with equal lack of respect and destroying the very marine and land resources that attracted them to The Bahamas. At the same time, Mr. Smith is the first to defend the honourable foreign investor who demonstrates regard which The Bahamas and its resources deserve.
His prowess as a litigator has catapulted him into the spotlight in controversial matters and his ability to pull together a team to put forth a winning argument in the face of steep challenges affirms his extraordinary skill in preparation and his speed of thought on his feet in the courtroom.
Frederick R.M. Smith, QC is the Senior Partner of Callenders and the Managing Partner of the Freeport, Chambers. He has an active civil trial and appellate litigation practice in Human Rights, Environmental, Constitutional, Regulatory and Commercial matters. Mr. Smith also specializes in transactional matters in Freeport under the Hawksbill Creek Agreement.
Practice Areas
- Human Rights & Constitutional Law
- Immigration
- Environment
- Appellate Law (including Privy Council)
- Transactional Law (in Freeport under the Hawksbill Creek Agreement)
- Commercial & Civil Litigation
- Arbitration & Mediation
- Judicial Review
- Costs & Recoveries
Education
He was born in Haiti where he had his primary education. His secondary education was in Nassau and at boarding school in Giggleswick in the North of England. He graduated from The College of Law in London, England and was called to The Bars of England & Wales (Lincoln’s Inn) and The Bahamas in 1977.
Firm Description:
“Timeless ideals of personal attention delivered in a lightning-fast, highly connected new world climate.”
For more than a century Callenders has stood at the forefront of major constitutional cases and at the heart of The Bahamas’ economic, banking, real estate, investment, development and business centre.
Its expertise in insolvency, civil litigation, shipping, aviation and human rights have earned an international reputation for the firm’s standards and achievements on behalf of clients.
Our History
Nassau was a small, bustling seaport with a need for lawyers to handle a growing number of contracts when young W.E.S. Callender hung out his shingle in 1903. As the energetic lawyer’s reputation spread, the firm grew. Many of the cases it handled set precedent in the jurisdiction. Today, Callenders, with offices in Nassau, Lyford Cay and Grand Bahama, is a vital partner in a vibrant economy.
Though protocols and procedures have changed since the country’s longest serving law firm opened its doors, one thing remains constant: Callenders’ commitment to excellence through personal service to every client.
Recipient of international awards including being ranked the nation’s best law firm in 2012, the firm provides a complete range of legal services including corporate, real estate, litigation, human rights, telecommunications, technology, insolvency and investment approvals. Its proficiency and experience in maritime and aviation matters are unquestioned. Callenders’ attorneys have addressed the United Nations and the Privy Council. The firm was the first in The Bahamas to have two attorneys appointed Queen’s Counsel, the highest honour of the legal profession in the Commonwealth.
“be serving its second century of clients with the same personal attention on which it was founded; earning trust by promptness, professionalism and performance.”
Every Callenders attorney pledges
- Accessibility
- Timely and Thorough Research and Documentation Delivery
- A Collaborative Approach
- Personal Professional Attention
