Brenda Brooks

Brenda Brooks is known as a fighter in her field, understandably why many high caliber leaders, law enforcement officers, and civilians seek her service. She is the person you call when you need results. She is passionate about her work and believes at her core that it’s what she was born to do.

Brenda is a born French Saint Martin citizen who attended Dutch schools all of her life. After completing VWO in St. Maarten/Curacao, she attended the University of Amsterdam in the Netherlands where she acquired a Master Degree in Dutch Law with specialization in Criminal and International Criminal Law. During the final stage of her studies, she interned and worked part-time at Jagtenberg & Jansen Attorneys in Hoofddorp and assisted with the preparation of the famous civil inquiry procedure that was initiated by a group of Taxi drivers against TCA in Amsterdam. After obtaining her law degree she was employed at Snijder Gerechtsdeurwaarders in Beverwijk where she started as a Legal advisor to the firm. Within a year she was promoted to Coordinator within the Team Execution and held the position until she resigned to return to her country.

As a daughter of the soil, Brenda believes in her country which she holds dear to her heart. The decision to return to Sint Maarten was quite easy seeing that her initial decision to leave was solely to further tertiary education abroad and to obtain the necessary working experience before coming back to serve her people to the best of her abilities.

Brenda has served on several boards on Sint Maarten, including the Supervisory Board of NAGICO, the Supervisory Board of Bureau Telecommunication & Post Sint Maarten, the Social Economic Council, the Sports Foundation, the AIDS Foundation, the Appeal Advisory Committee of the Social Insurance Bank and served as substitute member of the Appeal Commission for attorneys.

Brenda is a former law instructor for the University of Sint Martin where she taught Business Law.

Besides the legal and educational aspects of her life, Brenda invests time in empowering the youth by doing presentations at the various primary and secondary schools encouraging students to stay in school and strive for excellence. Brenda also contributes financially to various organizations on Sint Maarten as a form of giving back to people of Sint Maarten.

Brenda speaks the following languages: English, Dutch. French, Spanish and Papiamento

Thaisa Heymans

Attorney Thaїsa Heymans was born and raised in the Netherlands of Caribbean parents. She completed her primary, secondary and tertiary education in the Netherlands. During her university studies and after obtaining her Master’s Degree in International Commercial Law in June of 2011 Attorney Heymans worked at a Collection and Bailiff Agency in the Netherlands, where she was able to put in practice the Civil procedural laws that were cultivated at the university.

Attorney Heymans then went on to work in the maritime industry where she handled underwriting and settlement of damage to ships, construction equipment, damage to goods being shipped, and also damage to cables, for example, caused during drilling. Part of her duties was to formulate a legal opinion on policy cover, fact-finding investigation, debt and/or amount of damage to be paid out on claims.

After organizing a recruitment for the Dutch Caribbean Islands in the Netherlands, Attorney Heymans was hired by the Government of Sint Maarten in 2013 and she worked from December 2013 until June 2019 at the Ministry of TEATT, department of Civil Aviation, Shipping and Maritime in the function as Lawyer.

Attorney Heymans then went on to work as Legal Advisor at Bureau Intellectual Property (BIP) St. Maarten where she was responsible for drafting, reviewing and negotiating contracts and a variety of other (legal) documents. Ms. Heymans also handled legal tasks related to Intellectual Property Law, Constitutional and Administrative Law and Civil rights and formulated, propagated and defended policy, giving direction to rural policy and legislative processes. Attorney Heymans was also responsible for the preparation of periodic (financial) reports as well as processes related to International and National trademark registration.

Attorney Heymans joined Brooks & Associates in February 2023 where she will practice general law under the mentorship of Attorney Brenda Brooks. Brooks & Associates is elated to welcome Thaïsa Heymans to its dynamic, young and experienced team.

Thaїsa speaks Dutch, English, Papiamento and Spanish.

Ashton Richardson

Since the age of eight, Ashton Paul Richardson has aspired to become a judge and has dedicated his academic and professional career to achieving this goal.

Born and raised in Sint Maarten, Ashton is deeply rooted in his community, having attended public Dutch schools on the island. After completing his secondary education, he pursued an LL.B in HBO-Rechten (English stream) in The Hague, Netherlands, and later earned an LL.M in Global Criminal Law and Organized Crime from the University of Groningen. He graduated with distinction and received honors in Leadership.

During his studies in the Netherlands, Ashton had the opportunity to work with five judges at the Special Tribunal for Lebanon’s Trial Chambers. One judge, of Caribbean descent, played a pivotal role in reinforcing his ambition to serve as a judge in an international criminal court. Following this mentor’s advice, Ashton returned to Sint Maarten to gain domestic legal experience.

Upon returning home, he joined Brooks & Associates as a junior legal professional. However, he encountered an unexpected challenge when the Joint Court of Justice of Aruba, Curaçao, Sint Maarten and BES declined to swear him in as an attorney due to the non-recognition of the courses acquired during bachelor studies. Determined to overcome this obstacle, Ashton enrolled at the University of Curaçao, attending online classes for four years while working full-time.

Throughout his career, Ashton has developed expertise in immigration law, achieving a 97% success rate in immigration cases. His contributions to Sint Maarten include securing precedent setting court judgements in immigration and human rights, contributing to the jurisprudence and opinio juris in the Dutch legal field. Ashton also contributes to Sint Maarten socially by collaborating with the department of Community Development, Family & Humanitarian Affairs (CDFHA), and other similar organisations, in providing immigration information sessions, consultation days for those who have limited access to legal recourse/resources, and provide career guidance to teens and young adults.

After completing the relevant courses at the University of Curaçao, and dedicating years of service to the community of Sint Maarten, Ashton’s perseverance and commitment have finally culminated in his official recognition as a legal professional. On February 14, 2025, Ashton was sworn in as an Attorney-at-law, marking a significant milestone in his journey.

His achievement not only reflects his personal dedication to the legal field but also reinforces his ongoing commitment to making a meaningful impact in his community, both through legal service and social advocacy. With his passion for justice and continued contributions to the legal profession, Ashton’s future as a legal practitioner is sure to be marked by further success and service.