LEROY PARRIS, former executive chairman of CLICO Holdings (Barbados), earned over $80 000 in salary and perks monthly and was guaranteed a whopping $10 million in gratuity by the company.
In addition to a $30 000 monthly salary, he was also paid $300 000 a year as a bonus payment and another $300 000 yearly for providing management services.
The details were disclosed in High Court writs filed late last week by attorney-at-law Michael Yearwood on Parris’ behalf, claiming a total of over $10 million from CLICO Holdings (Barbados) and CLICO International Life Insurance.
Parris’ job contract, which a Government-appointed special Oversight Committee said it could not find any evidence of during its investigations, was signed and witnessed on May 15, 2005, by David Thompson, the late Prime Minister, former CLICO Holdings president Lawrence Duprey and current CLICO?Holdings Barbados president Terrence Thornhill.
The agreement was between CLICO and Parris’ company Professional Financial Services Inc., which stated that the former executive chairman would perform the duties of chairman and or chief executive officer of the insurance company and its affiliates.
In one of the court documents, Parris claimed that CLICO Holdings breached his contract when they failed to pay him the $10 million gratuity payment by May 15, 2008.
According to the writ, to date Parris received about $3.5 million from the company starting with a payment of just over $3.5 million in January 2009 and four payments of $30 000 each last year, the last being paid on November 24.
Parris has also brought two separate court actions against CLICO Holdings Barbados for failing to pay him yearly bonus payments and for the provision of management services during the period 2008 to last year.
According to him, the company should have paid him over $750 000 in each case for breaching his contractural arrangements.
The former executive chairman has also taken legal action against CLICO?International Life Insurance, claiming over $3.5 million for three personal policies which matured between November 2008 and December last year.
When contacted about the latest developments in the CLICO saga, William Layne retired Permanent Secretary who headed the special Oversight Committee set up by Government, described the disclosures in the writs filed by Parris as “shocking”.
“We [Oversight Committee] never got access to any contracts between CLICO Holdings and any of the companies, including CL?Financial Limited or Professional Financial Services.
“When we asked for contracts we [Oversight Commitee] were told there was no evidence of any contracts,” Layne told the WEEKEND NATION yesterday.
“The parent company [CLICO?Holdings] indicated in an email they could not find any contract. Maybe now the court would examine the contract(s) and determine what is payable, if any,”?Layne added.
The court action brought by Parris against his former employer follows an on-going investigation into the sale of 800 life policies by CLICO?International Life Insurance during the period of his chairmanship.
