THE Supreme Court on Friday started hearing an application challenging Justice Boyd Carey's refusal to excuse himself from the chairmanship of the enquiry into the financial sector meltdown of the 1990s.

Lawyers representing former Finance Minister Omar Davies, his former financial secretary Shirley Tyndall, banking executive Patrick Hylton and the Jamaica Redevelopment Foundation Inc started their bid for leave for Judicial Review into Carey's decision to stay.

The claimants are also asking that, if granted, the leave for Judicial Review operate as a stay of the enquiry pending the outcome of the review. The application was filed last Thursday.

The basis for the application is the apparent bias on the part of Carey, in the face of allegations that he had a debt with the collapsed Century National Bank (CNB) -- one of the entities at the heart of the enquiry, which is also looking into the role of the Financial Sector Adjustment Company's (Finsac) after the financial meltdown.

The claimants are also seeking the removal of attorney RNA Henriques, who is the commission's legal counsel. Henriques' ouster is being sought on information that he was a director of CNB before its takeover by Finsac. It was also alleged that Henriques was a guarantor of a loan granted by Century to a borrower.

Along with Carey, commissioners Charles Ross and Worrick Bogle are listed as defendants. Their removal is also being sought.

Friday's hearing started in the afternoon without the defendants having legal representation after Lackson Robinson, the deputy solicitor general in the Attorney General Chambers, withdrew himself just hours after announcing his representation of the commissioners.

The defendants were given until today to file their defences.

The in-chambers hearing will continue tomorrow before Justice Ingrid Mangatal.

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