Karen has over 28 years’ experience as a practicing Attorney at Law, in the Caribbean. She spent her first seven years in the field of law in her native country, Guyana, South America at the law firm deCaries Fitzpatrick and Karran where she became a partner. In the year 2000, she migrated to Barbados and joined the law firm Aequus Chambers in Bridgetown Barbados where she specialized in banking, property, offshore and trust and estate matters. She then merged with Hastings Attorney-at-law until 2011 when she started her own firm, Perreira Law that in 2015 rebranded and is now known as InterCaribbean Legal.
Karen has developed a very large commercial litigation and international business practice. She has attracted a clientele of individuals, family businesses and private and public companies. She works for various financial institutions advising on banking law and loans for both domestic and offshore borrowers and private investors. Her portfolio of clients includes international insurance companies, large construction companies, property developers, and HNWIs seeking investment opportunities in Barbados.
Her area of specialties are Trust and Estate Planning, Compliance (AML), Securities; Private Banking; Loan Documentation; Mergers & Acquisitions; Real Estate Transactions and Construction Contracts; Intellectual Property; Commercial Contracts; Procurement; Commercial and Trust Litigation; Licensing (regulatory and compliance); Maritime Law and Arbitration and Mediation.
She obtained a Diploma in International Trust and is currently the only practicing Attorney in Barbados who can boast of holding a STEP Advanced Certificate in Trust Disputes. This invaluable qualification has equipped her with the expertise to advise and safeguard international clients and investors in the preparation of trust instruments, structuring and administration of trusts.
She is also a certified anti-money laundering specialist with the Association of Anti-Money Laundering Specialist (ACAMS) and has obtained a Fellowship CIArb membership.
She is a member of the International Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners, and an executive Committee member of the Barbados Branch. She joined the Association of Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialists and The Chartered Institute of Arbitrators. In 2015 she also became a member of the Barbados International Business Association and the Barbados Bar Association.
