Judge to rule in lawsuit against Dr Avinash Sawh in June

Dr Avinash Sawh. -

THE judge presiding over the civil claim against Dr Avinash Sawh, the doctor who was suspended in 2023 for making racially insensitive remarks two years earlier, will deliver his decision on June 24.

Justice Christopher Sieuchand has indicated that he will deliver his decision on June 24. He gave the date and directions for the filing of submissions at the end of the second and final day of intense cross examination by lead attorney for Chantelle Arielle Figaro, a former employee on January 14.

Figaro has sued Sawh, his wife Allison Dass-Sawh and Sawh’s Medical Associates for constructive dismissal, assault and battery, breach of contract and related damages arising out of her employment at Sawh’s Medical Associates between October 2019 and October 2020.

She has alleged the Sawhs verbally abused and cursed her and created a toxic working environment while withholding overtime payment.

On the second day of the trial held virtually, Sawh was cross-examined by Figaro’s attorney Prakash Ramadhar, who questioned him extensively on recordings, alleged racial abuse, unsafe medical practices and the circumstances surrounding Figaro’s resignation.

Sawh admitted that during the covid19 pandemic he breached quarantine by going into his medical establishment around midnight, although he claimed he went only to sanitise the office. He acknowledged that Figaro was not working at that time, but said he assumed she reported him to the authorities for the breach. He told the court that he blamed Figaro initially, but that he later apologised.

Police later visited the establishment and Sawh conceded that he had a “bad outburst” and apologised for it, telling the court he was angry and trying to determine who had reported the breach.

A recording from October 28, 2020 was played in which Sawh was heard using offensive language towards Figaro after a visit to the clinic by one of her relatives, a police officer. Sawh admitted that in moments of anger he used racial language, describing it as “abhorrent,” and accepted that he said words to the effect of “dunce niggers” and that they “take bribes,” though he said he could not recall his exact words.

He claimed he was angry because he believed Figaro had lied about the visitor being her cousin, as there were several armed officers in the office at the time. “I am not a liar,” he told the court, while maintaining that Figaro had lied to him.

Sawh also suggested that many of the voice notes and recordings relied upon by Figaro were fabricated. Several recordings were played during the hearing, including ones in which instructions were allegedly given to staff.

Dr Sawh accepted that he gave instructions to staff to administer drugs, but insisted this only occurred when he was present or advising by phone. He denied that Figaro treated patients without supervision and rejected claims that expired drugs had their expiry dates erased, describing that allegation as “definitely fabricated.”

He also denied that the clinic’s ECG machine was non-functional, explaining that it was simply a paper jam. He said patients were still given ECGs and other doctors continued to refer patients to him.

In his testimony, Sawh categorically denied allegations of sexual harassment and assault, including an alleged incident on July 31, 2020 in which Figaro claimed he slapped her on her buttocks. “I never touched her,” he said. He also said he never found her attractive.

He further denied that his wife abused Figaro or that they created a toxic work environment. While he acknowledged a confrontation over a job letter, he accused Figaro of dishonesty and forgery in relation to employment letters. When questioned about unpaid overtime, Sawh said he was unsure, noting that his wife handled payroll matters. Although he said he kept a diary of patients and staff hours, no records were produced in court.

Sawh also accepted that although his witness statement said he did not designate nursing tasks to Figaro because she was not trained as a nurse, he later admitted she did perform such duties.

In her testimony under cross-examination by Ramadhar, Dass-Sawh said she handled payroll and administrative matters at the clinic. She admitted using obscene language in a recorded conversation relating to a dispute over a job letter, but claimed the recording was edited and that curse words were added.

She denied breaching any quarantine order or using demeaning or abusive language towards Figaro during discussions. While accepting that it was her voice in a recording played in court, she insisted not all the words were hers and maintained that parts of the conversation were fabricated.

Dass-Sawh denied ever telling Figaro to leave the office or locking her out. She rejected claims that Figaro was regularly required to work overtime and said Figaro had requested evening shifts. Although she told the court she had timesheets and documents to counter the overtime claims, she acknowledged these were not included in her witness statement.

Dass-Sawh denied being jealous of Figaro and insisted the work environment was neither toxic nor unhealthy. She said neither she nor her husband insulted or abused Figaro or caused her to leave her employment.

Defence witness Annalisa Ralph Sammy, an employee of the clinic, also testified, addressing the alleged July 31, 2020 incident. She told the court she was present in the office with Sawh and Figaro and briefly left the room to answer a phone call. She said she did not observe or hear any inappropriate behaviour by Sawh.

Sammy testified that Figaro later complained to her that Sawh had slapped her on the buttocks, but said both Sawh and Figaro were within her clear sight at the time. She said that she discussed the allegation with the Sawhs and that security camera footage was reviewed, revealing no evidence to support Figaro’s claim. However, the alleged footage was not presented to the court.

“I came here to speak the truth,” Sammy said. In addition to giving directions for the filing of submissions, Figaro’s attorneys were also ordered to provide written transcripts of the recordings submitted into evidence.

Figaro is seeking declarations of repudiatory breach of contract, constructive dismissal, assault and battery, breach of implied employment terms.

She has alleged she was subjected to repeated verbal abuse, racially offensive language, sexual harassment, unsafe medical practices, and assaults during her employment, leading to severe psychological harm including depression, anxiety and suicidal ideation. She also claimed loss of future earning capacity and reputational damage.

In 2023, the Medical Board of Trinidad and Tobago suspended Sawh for one week after finding him guilty of “infamous and disgraceful conduct” arising from a race-related rant against Figaro in 2020. Recordings of that incident circulated widely on social media, prompting calls for his medical licence to be revoked. Sawh later issued a public apology.

Figaro is also represented by attorneys Saira Lakhan and Kristian Dass, while Sawh is represented by Mario Merritt, Lemuel Murphy and Survana Jaimungal.