facilities as "an embarrassment''.

And he has warned that, unless the quality of facilities improve, international businesses may opt to operate in other jurisdictions.

Speaking to an audience of Hamilton Rotarians at a lunch yesterday, Narinder Hargun said: "Quality of professional services is the key to the long term future of international business.

"Quality services also requires that we must provide acceptable physical premises for our courts. The present physical state of our court buildings is an embarrassment.'' Mr. Hargun cited one example of an international case before the Supreme Court in which parties were having to consider converting office space into a temporary courtroom.

"We cannot expect our international clientele to provide their own temporary courtrooms,'' he said. "If we are to sell this jurisdiction as providing a first-rate infrastructure for international business we must provide acceptable accommodation for our judges and the courts and do so as a matter of priority.'' LAWYER LEG