BIU/Bermuda Forwarders dispute if necessary, he confirmed yesterday.

After the new Trade Disputes Act was passed by MPs on Friday it was unclear whether it could be invoked to end the conflict, which still festers despite a BIU decision to call off its strike.

Hours before the law was passed, Bermuda Forwarders lawyer Mr. Alan Dunch announced that Mr. Pearman had told him it would not be invoked for the dispute. But last night Mr. Pearman denied giving that assurance.

The Act gives Mr. Pearman power to set up a special tribunal to settle disputes. The tribunal's decisions would be legally binding and anyone ignoring it would have to pay compensation or be punished with fines or jail.

On Friday afternoon, before the Act was passed, Bermuda Forwarders lawyer Mr.

Alan Dunch launched a new court action against the union and 15 truckers at the centre of the dispute.

The company wants the courts to decide whether the 15 ended their own jobs when they walked out last year in support of a fired shop steward.

On Friday Mr. Dunch said he took the court action "on the strength of a representation to the company by the Hon. J. Irving Pearman that the current legislation which is being debated would not be invoked for the purpose of settling the alleged dispute between the company and the BIU''.

Last night Mr. Pearman said: "I don't recall any such conversation. I have said consistently that if the parties can resolve their problem then there's no reason to invoke this legislation with respect to that dispute. Mr. Dunch seems to have broadened that dialogue.

"He badgered me on Friday and I got back to him on the phone. I have witnesses that heard my side of the conversation telling him that he could do what he saw fit to do, that if he was going to take that route it was something we'd been asking both sides for the longest time, and as long as there was a movement to the solution of the problem then there was no need for the legislation. However, if that was not forthcoming, then you're obliged to invoke it.'' The courts could rule on the jobs issue but that might not end the dispute, Mr. Pearman said. He would be taking further legal advice today.

BIU lawyer Mr. Julian Hall MP said yesterday the new Bermuda Forwarders court action was "doomed to fail''.

"I'm quite pleased they have done this, because Mr. Dunch and Bermuda Forwarders are establishing quite clearly that they are the aggressors and the ones with no real desire to allow a binding settlement to be arrived at.

"They need to remember that Parliament is supreme. They can run but they simply can't hide.

"By bringing the action I think they're demonstrating how backward and retrograde they are. The company should rename itself `Bermuda Backwarders' because they're trying to push Bermuda backwards.''