Clarke

THE DISPUTE between former Scotiabank boss William 'Bill' Clarke and the financial institution over his retirement package is heading to the United Kingdom Privy Council, Jamaica's final appellate court.

Scotiabank filed an application last week Friday in the Court of Appeal seeking conditional leave to take the issue to the Privy Council.

The bank is appealing against a Court of Appeal ruling on October 2, which granted Clarke the declaration he was seeking that there was an agreement for the issue involving his retirement to go to arbitration.

Supreme Court Judge Horace Marsh had turned down Clarke's application on the grounds that there was no agreement for the issue to go to arbitration.

Clarke took the matter to the Court of Appeal and was successful. The Court of Appeal ordered the bank to pay Clarke's legal costs of the hearing in the Supreme Court and Court of Appeal.

The outcome of the court's ruling was that Clarke would remain in the house and continue to keep the two motor cars which the bank had assigned to him until the dispute was settled by arbitration.

Clarke's early retirement

Clarke

Clarke went on early retirement in November last year after being with the bank for 40 years. He served as president and chief executive officer for the last 13 years. He was not due for retirement until December 15, 2015, when he would be 65.

On July 28, 2008, he was called to a meeting at the head office of Bank of Nova Scotia in Canada, as a consequence of allegations of misconduct against him. A decision was taken at the meeting that he should go on early retirement, and a compensation package was offered to him. Clarke denied the allegations and rejected the offer.

Several meetings took place between Clarke and the bank before he retired, but there was no agreement on the compensation package. The bank had offered Clarke CAN$3.7 million.

On December 24 last year, Clarke filed a suit in the Supreme Court seeking a declaration that he and the bank were bound by an agreement to submit the dispute to arbitration for a determination as to what was a fair and equitable retirement plan for him, having regard to all the circumstances.

barbara.gayle@gleanerjm.com