Oudit Narine Rai, a Guyanese-Canadian, was on Wednesday admitted to the Guyana Bar, bringing over 20 years in the legal profession.
His petition for admission to the Bar was presented by Attorney-at-Law Sase Gunraj, who noted that Rai hailed from humble beginnings, having been born and raised in Canal Number One, West Bank Demerara (WBD).
He attended the West Demerara Secondary School and went on to do ‘A’ Levels at St. Rose’s High School.
Rai completed two undergraduate degrees from the University of Toronto in Political Science, a specialist degree in International Relations, and a Master’s in Public Administration and Policy Development.
He later attended the University of Guyana, where he completed his first-year law and proceeded to the University of the West Indies, where he obtained his LLB in 1994.
In September 1994, Rai commenced legal studies at the University of Toronto, where he attained his Canadian LLB equivalency, completed his articles and was admitted to the Ontario Bar in 1997.
He also obtained a Master’s in Law from the Thomas Jefferson School of Law in San Diego, California. He then completed the Legal Education Certificate program at the Eugene Dupich Law School in the Bahamas, which entitles him to be admitted to the Guyana Bar.
Attorney Gunraj further informed the court that Rai had practiced law in Canada for the last 26 years.
He was appointed Deputy Judge for the Superior Court of Justice during this period.
After his stint as a Deputy Judge, he was appointed as a member (Administrative Judge equivalent) of the Appeal Division of the Social Security Tribunal in Canada, heading appeal cases previously heard by panels of three Judges from the Federal Court of Canada.
Attorney Gunraj further advised the court that Rai is not only a fellow lawyer but also a family member as he, in conjunction with businessman Suresh Narine, has traced and documented every family member from indentureship to the present.
After admitting him to the Bar as an Attorney, Justice Sandil Kissoon informed the court that he had researched some of Rai’s published written decisions from the Appeal Division of Canada’s Social Security Tribunal.
Justice Kissoon indicated that the decisions were well written and hope he would bring to the local jurisdiction the same level of high competency.
The newly called attorney-at-law advised the court that his call to the Bar in Guyana has been a long process.
He said he is proud to be an attorney in the country where he was born and raised. He further advised that although he practiced law one hour away from Toronto, where no one looked like him, through professionalism and hard work, he quickly attained the admiration of his peers and the local Judges.
As a result, he was recommended to be appointed as a Deputy Judge and also served for ten years as a Director of the local Bar Association.
As part of his civic responsibilities, Rai was a Professor at Durham College, where he taught Insurance Law and Administrative Law.
He also has competencies in a diverse area of law, including civil litigation, International Taxation and Double Taxation Avoidance, International Tax Treaties, International Tax Risk, Transfer Pricing, Mergers & Acquisitions, Risk Management & Regulatory Compliance.
