- David P. Rowe
-
David P. Rowe (born May 8, 1959), is a Jamaican-American lawyer, professor, media commentator and pioneer in the area of transnational law. He has spent most of his career as a litigator in Florida, along with serving as a professor at the University of Miami School of Law since 1989. He is one of the world's leading voices on the law of the Caribbean Commonwealth, and his scholarly work and quotations have appeared in periodicals around the world.[1][2][3]
Contents
Early life
Rowe was born to Ira DeCordova Rowe, Q.C., O.J., viewed by many as the leading Jamaican jurist of the 20th century, and the president of the Courts of Appeal of Jamaica and Belize, along with a member of the Court of Appeal of Belize and of the Bahamas. Rowe's mother, Audrey Stewart, was a sister tutor at the Nursing School of the University of the West Indies. Rowe attended the Wolmer's School in Kingston (established 1729), where he was awarded the Sydney McDonald Award upon graduation.
Education
In 1977, Rowe received the Exhibition Scholarship of Law from the University of the West Indies. He received his L.L.B. from the University of the West Indies at Cave Hill, Barbados, in 1980, and received his Juris Doctor from the University of Miami School of Law in 1982. He was also a Rhodes Scholarship finalist for Jamaica in 1980 and 1981.
Career
Rowe is a member of the Florida Bar and the Jamaica Bar. He began his career as an associate at the law firm Greenberg Traurig in Miami, from 1982 to 1984, until he was hired by Holland & Knight. At Greenberg, he worked with former U.S. Ambassador Ambler Moss and Reubin Askew. Rowe worked for Holland & Knight from 1984 to 1990, becoming a capital partner in 1988. At Holland, he worked with Chesterfield Smith, the former president of the American Bar Association, and Bill McBride. In 1991, he opened the law firm of David Rowe, P.A. Rowe has had success in federal and state court. He obtained acquittals in notable federal cases such as United States v. Joel Powell and United States v. Hargitay, along with state cases such as State of Florida v. Lucille Sapp and State of Florida v. Sean Perry.[4] Rowe's expertise has seen him called as a witness to testify on the country conditions in Jamaica in several political asylum cases. He was the first Chairman of the American Bar Association Caribbean Law Committee. He testified as an Expert in United States federal practice in the case of Dabdoub v. Vaz, the historic dual-citizenship case in the Jamaica Supreme Court.
In 2011 Rowe represented Jamaican Entertainer Moses Davis (Beenie Man) after Davis' visa was canceled by the United States Consulate in Jamaica. The visa was restored and Beenie Man issued a press release thanking Rowe on July 27, 2011[5]
University of Miami School of Law
Rowe is a professor at the University of Miami School of Law, having taught at the Law School since 1989. In 2010, the school announced it would be adding a second Caribbean Law course, taught by Rowe, Caribbean Law II, which would focus on articles for publication in the University's new Caribbean Law Yearbook, co-founded by Rowe. Rowe coordinated the school's annual Marcus Garvey Seminar from 1999–2004, which commented on the teachings of Marcus Garvey and his legal and political philosophy.
U.S.-Jamaica Extradition Crisis
Rowe was one of the most outspoken advocates of the United States' stance in the Christopher Coke extradition crisis that began in the fall of 2009.[6] During the crisis, he was a leading speaker on the issue, with his commentary appearing in news outlets such as the BBC, Radio Russia and Time Magazine.[7] He also convened a symposium, the Caribbean Law Yearbook Conference, in November 2010, that was the first formal academic discussion of the events of the crisis. Rowe is a strong political supporter of the viability of the Westminster constitutional model, which prevails in Caribbean constitutions of the English-speaking West Indies. He is a vocal advocate of significant United States economic support and diplomatic influence in the Caribbean region. Rowe endorsed the literal interpretation of treaty text during the crisis: he said the country should adhere to its obligations under the bilateral extradition treaty.[8] In September 2011, he wrote an op-ed in the Caribbean Journal about Coke's guilty plea in US Federal Court in New York.[9] Many observers partially attribute the resignation of Prime Minister Bruce Golding to Rowe's specific incisive and investigative criticism on Jamaica radio of the political scandals in Golding's troubled 4 year administration.
Professor Rowe's characterization of the Golding Administration in Jamaica as a 'narco-democracy' which bought media silence and support in Jamaica from corrupt journalists was widely distributed on the internet through his monograph written for the Caribbean Journal entitled ' In The Belly Of The Beast'.
Transnational Dialogue
From 1984-1990, Rowe was the Registered Foreign Agent for Jamaica. While serving as Secretary to the Caribbean Research Development Foundation, Rowe, under the guidance of Sir Philip Sherlock, arranged for different Caribbean leaders to speak in Miami in the 1980s, including the Rt. Hon. Edward Seaga, Hon. Cheddi Jagan of Guyana, the Rt. Hon. P.J. Patterson of Jamaica and Sir Lynden Pindling of the Bahamas.
Caribbean Law Yearbook
Rowe, along with Alexander Britell, founded the Caribbean Law Yearbook at the University of Miami School of Law, the first journal in the United States focusing entirely on the law of the Commonwealth Caribbean, which will be published in the spring of 2011.[10] It was the subject of the 2010 Caribbean Law Yearbook Conference, which was aired on Jamaican television, and was addressed by the Hon. Peter Phillips, former Minister of National Security of Jamaica.
Publications
In addition to his legal and political commentary, his work has been published in news outlets and journals, including "Debt Equity Reduction" in the International Law Yearbook and "The Abandonment Doctrine or Is Your Green Card Safe?" in the Jamaica Gleaner. He also has a regular column in the Jamaica Sunday Herald, and authored the article "Trial By Jury: Is Trial by Jury protected in the Jamaican Constitution."
Fundamentally influenced by the writings of Professor Ralph Carnegie, Lord Diplock and his father Ira D. Rowe, David Rowe has theorized in several articles that the retention of the Westminster Model Constitution is essential to peace and stability in the Commonwealth Caribbean.
Books
Rowe is the author of "Ira Rowe: Caribbean Lawyer," which examines the life and career of his father from his beginnings as a Clerk of the Court to his rise to the presidency of the Court of Appeal of Belize and of Jamaica.[11] It also takes the memories of those who knew him, including the Queen of England, who personally expressed her condolences upon his death through her Chief Clerk, Gill Middleburgh. In 2009 he published a short novella of Jamaican life called "School Days."
References
- ^ http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/jamaica-standoff-highlights-links-between-ruling-party-and-drug-gang-1982887.html [1]
- ^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TclqnW_c-MQ
- ^ http://articles.cnn.com/2010-05-24/world/christopher.dudus.coke.profile_1_jamaican-extradition-robin-hood?_s=PM:WORLD [2]
- ^ http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/2001-11-08/news/0111080143_1_anthrax-hoax-hoax-weapon-white-powder [3]
- ^ http://www.caribjournal.com/2011/07/29/beenie-man-regains-us-visa/
- ^ http://www.boston.com/news/world/latinamerica/articles/2010/03/02/us_questions_jamaicas_reliability_in_drug_fight [4]
- ^ Padgett, Tim (2010-05-26). "[http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1991821,00.html". Time.com. http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1991821,00.html. Retrieved 2010-12-08.
- ^ "Jamaicaobserver.com". http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/Lawyer-warns-Jamaica-on-Dudus_7459638. Retrieved 2010-12-08.
- ^ "caribjournal.com". http://www.caribjournal.com/2011/09/01/op-ed-david-rowe-on-the-end-of-the-line-for-christopher-coke/. Retrieved 2011-09-16.
- ^ http://www.law.miami.edu/news.php?article=1722
- ^ http://www.constitution-and-rights.com/ira-rowe-caribbean-lawyer.html
- http://jamaica-star.com/thestar/20110730/ent/ent1.html (Jamaica Star Publication with Beenie Man thanking Prof. Rowe)
External links
Categories:- 1959 births
- Living people
- Jamaican lawyers
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