By AZARD ALI Saturday, November 21 2009

NIZAM KHAN became the tenth State Attorney from the Department of Public Prosecutions to be appointed as a magistrate in the last two years. Khan was administered the oath of office by Chief Justice Ivor Archie in a brief ceremony in the Hall of Justice on Wednesday. The appointment was made by the Judicial and Legal Services Commission.

The commission, in the last two years, appointed to the magistracy former State Attorneys Nalini Singh, Debbie Ann Barsaw, Andre Stroude, Tarmatie Ramdass, Alexander Prince, Bharmanand Dubay, Lisa Ramsumair-Hinds, Cheron Raphael and Roger Ramgoolam.

Attorney in private practice, Indar Jagroo, was also appointed on Wednesday during a brief ceremony presided over by CJ Archie and Acting Chief Magistrate Mark Wellington.

Khan, who obtained his Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of London in 1998, had been prosecuting criminal cases in the Assizes. At the Hugh Wooding Law School, he captured the school’s trophy for placing first for the best Impromptu speech. Khan served as legal assistant in the Attorney General’s office and secretary of the Legislative Review Committee. He then joined the Department of Public Prosecutions office where he worked for the past eight years.

Jagroo graduated England, with an LLB degree and was called to the bar in England and Wales. He had been an attorney in private practice. Khan is sitting in with Wellington in the First Police Court, San Fernando, while Jagroo is presiding in the Port-of-Spain magistrates’ court.