A Paget dentist embroiled in a long-running employment dispute had his name cleared yesterday, after a judge ruled that he was not given a fair hearing by the Bermuda Dental Board.

Puisne Judge Ian Kawaley recommended that dental disciplinary laws be modernised in the wake of the judgement in the case of Dr. James Fay.

Dr. Fay, of Paget Dental Group, and his former hygienist Keri Payne were found guilty of serious misconduct and inefficiency following a complaint made in 2003.

The decision by the Bermuda Dental Board came after two patients questioned whether the hygienist had been conducting tooth filling work she was not licensed to carry out.

Governor Sir John Vereker subsequently upheld the Board?s verdicts in 2004 ? but quashed sentences of a three-month suspension for Dr. Fay and one-month for Mrs. Payne.

And Mr. Justice Kawaley yesterday ruled that Dr. Fay and Mrs. Payne were not given a fair hearing by the board as he quashed both convictions against the pair.

He said the Board ? made up of five dentists appointed by the Governor ? had been both prosecution and judge, and said that the appeals process to the Governor and not to a law court should be changed as this contradicted the Bermuda Constitution.

Dental laws now look set to be overhauled, after Mr. Justice Kawaley said that, in his view, appeals in future cases should be heard by a judge and should not be sent to the Governor, whom, he said, did not qualify as an ?independent and impartial tribunal?.

This change would bring the dental profession in line with the majority of professional bodies on the Island, the Judge stated, which allow appeals from internal disciplinary tribunals to be heard by the Supreme Court.

His ruling added that the current laws governing dental standards were ?inconsistent with the constitutional right to a fair hearing before an independent and impartial tribunal ...?

It said that this was because the dental regulations allow disciplinary proceedings to be started and adjudicated by the Dental Board, ?which is effectively required to act as a judge in its own cause?.

Mr. Justice Kawaley rejected Dr. Fay?s accusations of bias against the Board as ?tenuous?, but said it was ?manifestly not an independent and impartial tribunal?.

And he added: ?No doubt the Minister of Health, in consultation with the Dental Board, which will in turn consult the Dental Association, will consider appropriate legislative action to ensure that the dental disciplinary regime is appropriately modernised.?

Solicitor General Wilhelm Bourne, representing the Governor, told an earlier hearing in the case that a bill taking appeal decisions out of the Governor?s hands and making them the responsibility of the courts had been discussed.

Yesterday?s ruling came after an application was made for a judicial review into the Governor?s decision to uphold the Board?s verdicts.

Lawyer David Kessaram, for Dr. Fay, had said the facts of the case did not amount to disgraceful conduct by the pair, even if dental rules were breached. The Board, in response, said Dr. Fay and Mrs. Payne were guilty because they did not read the regulations relating to their positions.

Attempts to contact Dr. Fay for a reaction to the ruling in the civil case were not successful yesterday. Mrs. Payne has not worked in Bermuda since her suspension in 2004 and has returned home to Canada.