Barrington E. Frankson

Findings — machine-extracted (anthropic-batch:claude-opus-4-8); verify against the decision

This Privy Council appeal concerned whether section 12 of the Legal Profession Act (Jamaica) required an aggrieved person (Mrs Monica Whitter) to personally make the complaint and affidavit against her former attorney Barrington Frankson, or whether her son Basil Whitter could do so as her agent. The Disciplinary Committee had originally struck Frankson off the roll and ordered restitution, but the Court of Appeal held by majority that the Committee lacked jurisdiction because the affidavit was not sworn personally. The Privy Council held this was too narrow, applying the principle qui facit per alium facit per se, and found the application was properly made through an agent. The appeal was allowed with costs and the matter remitted to the Court of Appeal to hear on the merits, with a stay of the Committee's orders. No substantive misconduct findings were made by the Privy Council.