Savalenoa Mareva Betham Annandale

Savalenoa Mareva Betham Annandale
Attorney-General of Samoa
In office
22 July 2020 – 2 September 2021[a]
Prime MinisterTuila'epa Sa'ilele Malielegaoi
Fiamē Naomi Mataʻafa
Preceded byLemalu Herman Retzlaff
Succeeded bySu'a Hellene Wallwork
Personal details
Political partyHuman Rights Protection Party

Savalenoa Mareva Betham Annandale is a Samoan lawyer and jurist. From July 2020 to September 2021, she served as Attorney-General of Samoa. Previously she had served as the first female president of the Samoa Law Society.[1]

Annandale was educated at the University of Central Queensland, graduating with a B.A. in history in 1991.[2] She then studied law at the University of the South Pacific, graduating with a law degree in 1997.[2] She worked as a public servant in New Zealand for the Department of Corrections, Ministry of Pacific Island Affairs, and Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade before returning to Samoa to work for the Office of the Attorney General and the Ministry of Justice and Courts Administration.[3] She then entered private practice with her husband Lauaki Jason Annandale and served as President of the Samoa Law Society until 2017.[4][5] In 2016, she called for judges of the Land and Titles Court of Samoa to receive legal training.[6] During the COVID-19 pandemic, she was appointed by Samoa's cabinet to sit on an advisory committee on the state of emergency.[2]

In July 2020 she was appointed Attorney-General for a term of three years, replacing Lemalu Herman Retzlaff.[4]

Savalenoa played a key role in the 2021 Samoan constitutional crisis, representing the caretaker regime of Tuila'epa Sa'ilele Malielegaoi in court cases over the women's quota, the head of state's attempt to call new elections,[7] and other issues of constitutional interpretation. She refused to participate in a key hearing on 23 May to overturn the head of state's purported suspension of parliament, then attempted to disqualify Chief Justice Satiu Simativa Perese and all other members of the Supreme Court of Samoa from hearing election-related cases, alleging bias and "conflicts of interest".[8][9] She subsequently rescinded the request and apologized to the judiciary.[10][11] Following the FAST Party's 24 May swearing-in ceremony she took court action to have it declared unlawful. As a result, parliament was ordered to convene within seven days, and she was ordered to advise the Clerk of the Legislative Assembly and all other relevant constitutional actors to do so.[12][13] Her appeal against this order, and related action by FAST seeking to validate the swearing-in under the doctrine of necessity, ultimately resulted in the crisis being resolved and FAST being declared the government.[14][15]

Following the resolution of the crisis, Savalenoa refused to meet with the new government, saying that she was too busy drafting her letter of resignation.[16] She subsequently told Prime Minister Fiamē Naomi Mataʻafa that she would not defend the judiciary from attacks by the HRPP because of the "sensitive political climate".[17] On 20 August 2021, she was suspended by Cabinet.[18]

On 2 September 2021, Savalenoa was dismissed from office due to her disrespect for the Supreme Court of Samoa and her failure to defend the judiciary. She was replaced by Law Society of Samoa president Su'a Hellene Wallwork.[19] The following year, she filed a lawsuit against prime minister Fiamē surrounding her ousting by the head of government.[20]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ Suspended: 20 August 2021 – 2 September 2021

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "newSPLAsh: issue 9: WOMEN IN LAW IN THE SOUTH PACIFIC". South Pacific Lawyers Association. p. 2. Retrieved 23 July 2020.
  2. ^ a b c Joyetter Feagaimaali'i (22 July 2020). "Savalenoa Mareva appointed new Attorney General". Samoa Observer. Retrieved 23 July 2020.
  3. ^ "Samoa Cabinet appoints Savalenoa Mareva Betham Annandale as new AG". Pacific Islands News Association. 22 July 2020. Retrieved 23 July 2020.
  4. ^ a b "Samoa appoints new Attorney-General". RNZ. 23 July 2020. Retrieved 23 July 2020.
  5. ^ "Su'a Hellene Wallwork new Samoa Law Society President". New Zealand Law Society. 9 March 2017. Retrieved 23 July 2020.
  6. ^ "Legally trained judges vital for Samoa lands court". RNZ. 15 July 2016. Retrieved 23 July 2020.
  7. ^ Sina Retzlaff (22 May 2021). "Desperate Tactic to Delay Parliament Rejected by Chief Justice". Samoa Global News. Archived from the original on 22 May 2021. Retrieved 22 May 2021.
  8. ^ Sapeer Mayron and Mandy Te (27 May 2021). "Samoa election turmoil: Attorney-general applies to have judges disqualified over hearing about swearing-in ceremony". Stuff. Archived from the original on 26 May 2021. Retrieved 27 May 2021.
  9. ^ "Samoa: Attorney-general applies to have justices thrown out". RNZ. 27 May 2021. Archived from the original on 27 May 2021. Retrieved 27 May 2021.
  10. ^ "Samoa AG's office apologizes and rescinds request to recuse judges". Samoa News. 27 May 2021. Archived from the original on 2 June 2021. Retrieved 28 May 2021.
  11. ^ Lanuola Tusani Tupufia - Ah Tong (28 May 2021). "Recusal application against Justices withdrawn". Samoa Observer. Archived from the original on 3 June 2021. Retrieved 28 May 2021.
  12. ^ "Swearing-in Unlawful, Parliament Must Convene within 7 Days". Samoa Global News. 28 June 2021. Archived from the original on 28 June 2021. Retrieved 28 June 2021.
  13. ^ Lanuola Tusani Tupufia - Ah Tong (28 June 2021). "Parliament must sit; swearing-in unlawful: court". Samoa Observer. Archived from the original on 28 June 2021. Retrieved 28 June 2021.
  14. ^ Lanuola Tusani Tupufia - Ah Tong (23 July 2021). "Court declares F.A.S.T. Government; impasse over". Samoa Observer. Retrieved 23 July 2021.
  15. ^ Lagipoiva Cherelle Jackson and Kate Lyons (23 July 2021). "Samoa's political crisis ends and first female prime minister installed after court ruling". The Guardian. Retrieved 23 July 2021.
  16. ^ Soli Wilson (24 July 2021). "A-G, Clerk absent as F.A.S.T. meets Ministry chiefs". Samoa Observer. Retrieved 25 July 2021. several sources have told the Samoa Observer she phrased the matter slightly more pointedly: saying she would be too busy drafting her letter of resignation to attend.
  17. ^ Matai'a Lanuola Tusani T - Ah Tong (13 August 2021). "Attorney General worried by sensitive "political climate"". Samoa Observer. Retrieved 21 August 2021.
  18. ^ Joyetter Feagaimaali'i (21 August 2021). "Attorney General, Legislative Clerk suspended". Samoa Observer. Retrieved 21 August 2021.
  19. ^ Sialai Sarafina Sanerivi (2 September 2021). "Attorney General sacked". Samoa Observer. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  20. ^ Matai'a Lanuola Tusani T - Ah Tong (30 May 2022). "Savalenoa files $650,000 lawsuit against P.M. Fiame". Samoa Observer. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
Legal offices
Preceded by Attorney-General of Samoa
2020–2021 		Succeeded by
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