New GPC lawyer in NY displays confusion, acts outside his lawsuit
…signals hatred for Glenn Lall, Adam Harris
A period of deposition that should have lasted three days lasted a mere 42 minutes. Sam Beckerman, the lawyer for the plaintiff, was unaware of the lawsuit his client filed.
New Guyana Pharmaceutical corporation (New GPC) is suing the New York edition of Kaieteur News for libel over the prices the pharmaceutical company charged the Ministry of Health and the Georgetown Public Hospital for drugs supplied to the two institutions.
On Tuesday, the first day of the deposition, Beckerman, in keeping with the action filed, had to depose Dominic Chandra, the circulation manager of the New York edition. But he came prepared to depose Adam Harris, Editor-in-Chief of Kaieteur News.
Lawyers for Kaieteur News, the defendants in the writ, had initially intended to present Adam Harris, Editor-in-Chief, to be deposed by Beckerman. However, after examining the requests Beckerman made, they recognized that he was seeking to prosecute the National Media and Publishing Company, the publishers of Kaieteur News, in New York.
“He has to do that in Guyana. There are no shortcuts to whatever he wants to do,” said James Sullivan, one of the lawyers for Kaieteur News.
His writ was directed at Kaieteur News Inc, the New York edition of the newspaper.
Beckerman turned up with clippings from Kaieteur News (Guyana) and not one clipping of the newspaper he was suing.
Attorney for Kaieteur News, James Sullivan, pointed out his error and this angered Beckerman to the point where he accused Sullivan and Kaieteur News’s other lawyer, John Corring, of prolonging the legal matter. He also accused them of hiding Adam Harris in some backroom. Needless to say, they invited him to conduct a search. Adam Harris, on the advice of the lawyers, was not there.
The Company Secretary for New Guyana Pharmaceutical Corporation travelled to New York on the same flight as Harris. He conveyed this information to Beckerman.
Sullivan and Corring said that even if Harris was in the room, Beckerman would not have been allowed to depose him because he was barking up the wrong tree.
So unprepared was Beckerman that he never even sought to ascertain the composition of the New York office. Both Sullivan and Corring could only conclude that somebody hates Glenn Lall, the publisher of Kaieteur News and Harris.
Corring said that if Beckerman wants to depose Harris he would have to get an order of court. However, Harris would be testifying in court if the matter ever reaches there.
Meanwhile, the lawyers for Kaieteur News are still awaiting some of their requests from New GPC. They have asked the company to produce invoices of its purchases and receipts of what it would have obtained from the Ministry of Health and GPHC.
They are also to depose the New GPC.