By Staff Writer
The Supreme Court has suspended Cllr. Samuel Pearson from the practice of law for six months over allegations of unethical conduct.
The court also ordered Cllr. Pearson to restitute the amount of US$93,369 and L$6,235,353.41, which he used a purported Letters of Administration to withdraw from withdraw his late mother’s salary and personal savings account lodged at the United Bank of Africa (UBA), and the Liberia Bank for Development and Investment (LBDI), subsequently on June 23, 2022, instructed the management of the said Bank to close his late mother’s account.
The saving was a part of the Intestate Estate of his deceased mother, Mamie Hayford Pearson. The high court took the decision after the Grievance and Ethics Committee (GEC), had initially found Cllr. Pearson liable.
The genesis of this complaint is traced to the demise of Maime Hayford Pearson, the
late wife of J. Henric Pearson, a resident of Montserrado County, Liberia Madam Maime Hayford Pearson died seized of properties, real and personal, including monies she deposited into her accounts maintained at the United Bank of Africa (UBA) and the Liberia Bank for Development and Investment (LBDI), respectively, during her life time, but leaving no will and last testament.
But, Ballah Yargbo, the complainant, and son of the late Maime Hayford Pearson, not satisfied with the manner in which his late mother’s estate, especially, monies deposited in the banks were administered by his step-father-and-surviving spouse of the late Maime Hayford Pearson, J. Henric Pearson, in concert with Counsellor Samuel Pearson, and his nephew to J. Henric Pearson, filed a complaint against Counsellor Samuel Pearson with the Office of the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Liberia, seeking redress for his role played while administering the said Intestate Estate, on June 6, 2023.
The complainant alleged that his step-father, James Henric Pearson, having remarried after the death of his wife, Mamie Hayford Pearson, who was also the mother of the complainant, he, the complainant, being the only surviving child of the deceased, obtained Letters of Administration from the Monthly & Probate Court for Montserrado County, on May 23, 2023; that on the strength of the Letters of Administration obtained, he was able to unearth that-Counsellor Samuel Pearson, a family lawyer, had earlier obtained a Letters of Administration in his own name on May 9, 2022, to administer the intestate Estate of his deceased mother, Mamie Hayford Pearson, without his consent; that Counsellor Pearson used the said Letters of Administration to withdraw US$45,000 from his late mother’s salary and personal savings account lodged at the United Bank of Africa (UBA), and subsequently
on June 23, 2022, instructed the management of the said Bank to close his late mother’s account, all to his exclusion.
The complainant further alleged that on July 27, 2022, Cllr. Pearson succeeded in having him, the complainant, and his step-father, James Henric Pearson, signed a Limited Power of Attorney, authorizing him (Cllr. Pearson), to access and withdraw money from his late mother’s account housed at the Liberia Bank for Development and Investment (LBD); that Counsellor Pearson, using the Limited Power of Attorney, withdrew an unspecified amount from the LBDI’s accounts of his late mother without disclosure and not until he presented to the management of LBDI his Letters of Administration obtained from the Monthly and Probate Court for Montserrado County to administer the Intestate Estate of his mother, that he discovered Cllr. Pearson had withdrawn the following amounts: US$48,369.25 and L$849,519.91 and $5,385,833.50 respectively; and that the total of US$93,369 and L$6,235,353.41 were withdrawn from his late mother’s accounts at UBA and LBDI.
The complainant also averred that of the total amounts recited herein above, he received the amounts of S$10,000.00 and L$1,500,000 only, and that Counsellor Pearson had earlier informed him that his step-father, James Henric Pearson, had instructed him, Counsellor Pearson, to give him, the complainant, the said amounts which were withdrawn from his late mother’s accounts at the LBDI; that this information was never revealed to him until he obtained the Letters of Administration from the Monthly and Probate Court for Montserrado County, to administer his mother’s Intestate Estate.
