The Supreme Court of Liberia has banned Cllr. Samuel S. Pearson from practicing law directly or indirectly for six months for conspiring with his brother, Mr. James Pearson, to deprived Mr. Ballah Yargbo of his rightful inheritance as the sole surviving heir of his late mother, Madam Maime Hayford Pearson.
After the suspension of Cllr. Pearson, the High Court also mandated the clerk to inform the parties, all courts and the Liberian National Bar Association (LNBA) of the counsellor’s suspension.
The Supreme Court in its Tuesday, February 18, 2025 ruling said, “Counsellor Samuel S. Pearson being related to the spouse of the decedent, his role in obtaining letters of administration in exclusion of the son of the decedent, and benefiting from the proceeds of the decedent’s bank accounts, constitutes conflict of interest and undue influence, and therefore unethical.”
The ruling: “WHEREFORE AND IN VIEW OF THE FOREGOING, the findings and commendation(s) of the Grievance and Ethics Committee (GEC) is affirmed with modification, that Counsellor Samuel S. Pearson is suspended from the practice of law directly or indirectly for a period of six (6) months. The Clerk of this Court is mandated to inform the parties and also all courts and the Liberian National Bar Association (LNBA) of this decision. AND IT IS HEREBY SO ORDERED.”
In an acknowledgment of the restitution process, Mr. Yargbo confirmed receipt of part of the funds owed to him from the estate. This included US$30,000.00 and LD 1,500, 000.
However, the remaining balance of US$9,500.00 is yet to be paid, after an agreement was reached that the sum be settled by December 15, 2023.
The Supreme Court’s ruling further instructs that should Pearson and his associates fail to settle the outstanding amount, the Monthly and Probate Court will be required to enforce a proper accounting of the decedent’s remaining assets, including nine stores in Fiamah and a water and ice factory in Brewerville, which have been under their management since the death of Maime Hayford Pearson in March 2022.
This decision of the High Court marked an important step in reinforcing ethical conduct within Liberia’s legal profession, emphasizing the need for transparency and accountability in handling estate matters.
On August 14, 2024, Chief Justice Sie-A-Nyene G. Yuoh instructed the Grievance & Ethics Committee to investigate allegations of ethical misconduct against Cllr. Pearson and present its findings to the Supreme Court.
Yargbo on September 25, 2024, told the Grievance & Ethics Committee that his mother, who passed away on March 22, 2022, owned significant real estate and personal assets.
According to him, alongside her husband, Mr. James Pearson (a former Director of the National Security Agency (NSA) and current Ambassador at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs), his deceased mother also co-founded several businesses, including a water production factory, and maintained a 50% share in three other businesses.
In his complaint, Yargbo alleged that following his mother’s death, Mr. James Pearson and Cllr. Samuel Pearson orchestrated a scheme to deny him his inheritance, where Cllr. Pearson, acting as a legal representative and brother-in-law to the deceased, provided false testimony to the Probate Court, misrepresenting himself as Madam Pearson’s nephew while her body remained in the mortuary awaiting burial.
He told the investigation that Cllr. Pearson, who was his mother’s lawyer and brother-in-law while she was alive, fraudulently secured a letter of administration over her estate and unlawfully withdrew more than US$140,000 from her accounts at UBA and LBDI.
Due to the complaint from Yargbo, the LNBA’s Grievance & Ethics Committee had previously investigated the allegation in October 2023, finding Cllr. Pearson liable for ethical breach and recommended for a 12-month suspension.
