Tracy Permitted to Call Herself Party Leader Through Freedom of Speech

Shyne Barrow has also taken legal action against Panton, aiming to stop her from calling herself the leader of the United Democratic Party. Barrow argued that this violated the court’s November ruling to maintain the status quo. According to Sheena Pitts, the Alliance’s chairperson, Panton and her supporters, as well as the media, are free to refer to her as the leader under freedom of speech.

 

Sheena Pitts, United Democratic Party

“The second aspect of the proceedings this morning is based on whether or not the honorable Panton could be restrained or gagged from saying anything in relation to the UDP, the UDP headquarters, whether or not she could be gagged from holding herself out as interim leader and that sort of thing. And I have to point out that application also included in it that order was intended to extend over to parties who are not parties to the proceeding, namely Hot Off the Press, Orson J. Ellington Mr. John Saldivar, and unfortunately myself, who have zero social media presence. And so, what really was shown today in arguments is that if it is that contempt, having not been established based on your alleged breach, then there can be no subsequent order to gag anyone where your application for injunctive relief is based on contempt. So essentially this morning, parts of the arguments really entailed freedom of speech and whether freedom of speech would be impeded by any injunctive relief, especially freedom of speech in a political space. And so having gone through the legal authorities, having listened to the arguments, the court concluded that the second application to injunct her restrained Honorable Panton and her associates and those persons I named before  from exercising freedom of speech it could not, it cannot be obtained and the order as per it could not be granted. So, effectively, both applications by Barrow failed,  and at the end the principle where cost follows the event, it meant that Honorable Panton and her learned attorneys are entitled to costs of the two unsuccessful applications.”