Ministry of Justice

Penalty / misconduct for intimate relationship with client, then denying relationship during complaint / practitioner conceded misconduct / Lawyers and Conveyancers Act (Lawyers: Conduct and Client Care) Rules 2008, rule 5.7.1 / Lawyers and Conveyancers Act 2006, section 240 / HELD / lawyer briefly represented client in family law matters / client’s husband complained / lawyer dishonestly denied relationship, an aggravating feature and significant misconduct / later made a self-report / no gross breach of trust, but relationship can compromise objectivity / retainer supervised, lawyer stepped back quickly / mitigating features include unblemished career, conduct out of character, remorse, self-report / Tribunal ordered four months’ suspension / final name suppression order / interests of rehabilitation outweigh public knowing name / no risk to community, purposes of disciplinary regime achieved / apology ordered / practitioner to pay Standards Committee and Tribunal costs

Penalty / misconduct / assisted a person to avoid GST, failed to account for GST, miscoded accounts / business dealing unconnected with legal services / whether suspension from practise necessary to mark seriousness, denounce conduct and signal standards of integrity required of lawyers in all business dealings / HELD / conduct not most serious, involves private business arrangements / aggravating features include long delay in failing to pay GST and previous unsatisfactory conduct finding / mitigating feature include full payment of GST and penalties, no harm to clients and outsourced accounting responsibilities / positive references go beyond usual references, include senior criminal jury work in South Auckland, and mentoring young Māori and Pacifica lawyers / practitioner fit and proper, preventing him from doing so would risk serious loss to clients and employees /  Tribunal ordered censure, $10,000 fine / practitioner to pay Standard’s Committee’s and Tribunal’s costs 

Penalty / found guilty of six charges of misconduct for six incidents of exploitative sexual contact with five different women at two work events / partner in law firm offended against summer clerks / seriousness of conduct / aggravating features / mitigating factors / strike-off starting point / HELD / misconduct serious, somewhat below Horsley or Daniels cases, where practitioners were suspended three years / aggravating features include repetition, power imbalance, incalculable impact on victims, and intention to get drunk / mitigating features include consequences already incurred, changes made, and financial circumstances / has previously minimised his responsibility, but relatively recent changes in accepting accountability are positive although belated / financial circumstances not defining nor as dire as claimed / caused reputation damage to profession / Tribunal ordered censure and two-year suspension / practitioner to pay Standards Committee’s costs  and Tribunal costs

Penalty / practitioner admitted two charges of misconduct and found guilty of another / conveyancing transaction involving transfer of property owned by practitioner mother to company owned by the practitioner and her husband / practitioner then borrowed additional money against the property / conflict of interest / failing to protect client’s interests / misleading conduct / appropriate penalty / HELD / practitioner did not present risk to other clients or public / no need for fine or censure / features of misconduct (inattention to practitioner’s mother and securing additional funds against the property) understandable although grievous / Tribunal ordered 10-week suspension / practitioner to pay Standards Committee’s and Tribunal’s costs

Penalty / practitioner admitted misconduct for misappropriation of $1 million / accepted they would be struck off / did not accept further charge of obstructing and frustrating the Standards Committee’s investigative processes / whether practitioner liable for obstruction / if so, whether misconduct or unsatisfactory conduct / HELD / obstruction charge made out / practitioner failed to provide files and documents despite repeated requests / behaviour cannot be ignored even though practitioner will inevitably be struck off / message needs to be sent to the legal community and the community at large that this behaviour is serious / obstruction was misconduct / conduct not excused by practitioner’s mental stress / Tribunal ordered practitioner be struck off and imposed censure for obstruction / practitioner to pay Standards Committee’s and Tribunal’s costs

Liability / duty of candour / failure to disclose relevant information to High Court in without notice application / whether conduct is misconduct / High Court Rules 2016, rule 32.2 / Lawyers and Conveyancers (Lawyers: Conduct and Client Care) Rules 2008, rule 2.1 / rule 13.1 / HELD / should have disclosed a refused analogous Family Court application, a claim by opposing party, and a potential defence  / outcome of proceedings affected / practitioner’s explanation to Tribunal differed from submissions to Committee / reckless breach of duty of candour / practitioner’s forum shopping of “significant concern” / misconduct charge proved / Tribunal could not infer deliberate omission of documents without evidence from employee / practitioner obliged to provide as much information as available to assist Tribunal / interim name suppression granted

Penalty / practitioner admitted charge laid under s 241(d) / conviction for obstructing the exercise of power under the Overseas Investment Act 2005 / practitioner nominated his company to acquire land his purchaser client did not have Overseas Investment Office (OIO) consent to acquire / also provided false information and a false loan document to OIO / Lawyers and Conveyancers Act 2006, section 241(d) / HELD / dishonesty conviction very serious / prior unsatisfactory conduct finding an aggravating feature / mitigating features include early acceptance of guilt, remorse, contribution to Korean community, and practitioner’s financial circumstances / Tribunal ordered suspension of just under six months / practitioner to pay Tribunal costs

Liability / practitioner acted on conveyancing transaction for her mother in conflict of interest / whether practitioner engaged in misleading or deceptive conduct towards her mother / promised to document arrangement and to register a caveat / whether promises dishonestly made / practitioner admitted two other misconduct charges / Lawyers and Conveyancers Act 2006, section 7(1)(a) / Lawyers and Conveyancers Act (Lawyers: Conduct and Client Care) Rules 2008, rule 11.1 / HELD / assuring her mother that her interest in the property would be protected, and promising to document the transaction but not doing so, was likely to mislead or deceive / misleading representations comprise a form of recklessness, wilful blindness / s 7(1)(a)(ii) test met / misconduct charge proved

Liability and penalty / relationship with a prisoner for whom the practitioner had previously acted as an employee lawyer / practitioner’s employer declined to act for the prisoner, but the practitioner continued contact in dishonest circumstances / whether conduct misconduct / Lawyers and Conveyancers Act 2006, section 7(1)(a) / Lawyers and Conveyancers Act (Lawyers: Conduct and Client Care) Rules 2008, rule 2 / rule 2.4 / rule 5.7 / rule 11.1 / rule 12 / HELD / conduct occurred while providing regulated services / conduct disgraceful and dishonourable / serious end of misconduct spectrum / breach of relationship of trust and degree of deception involved / mitigating factor that practitioner had only worked as an employee lawyer for three months prior / offending lasted six days / Tribunal ordered 12-month suspension and prohibited to practice on own account until authorised by Tribunal / practitioner to pay half of costs sought by Standards Committee ($7,000) and Tribunal’s costs

Penalty / misconduct for corresponding with another person in an offensive, abusive and threatening manner / District Court granted harassment order against practitioner and condemned conduct / HELD / survey of principles of deterrence and denunciation / at the most serious end of the scale / aggravating factors include repeated nature of conduct, use of language against unrepresented party, misogyny in abusive comments, persistent conduct after being told to stop, and the lack of prompt apology and insight / mitigating that practitioner pled guilty, previous good character, and the effect of suspension on practitioner’s financial commitments and clients / Tribunal ordered four-month suspension and censure / practitioner to pay Standards Committee’s and Tribunal’s costs

Penalty / unsatisfactory conduct for failing to pay compensation as ordered in a timely manner / HELD / full range of penalties available when unsatisfactory conduct charged proved, but misconduct is more serious than unsatisfactory conduct / failure to comply with disciplinary sanctions typically considered unsatisfactory conduct / LCRO reviewed compensation order / non-compliance with order runs from date of LCRO decision / Tribunal ordered censure, practitioner to compensate client $600 for loss of use of money, and to pay $6,000 fine and Standards Committee’s full costs, and Tribunal’s costs

Decision on interlocutory application.  Date of decision: 4 March 2021.  

Penalty / misconduct for providing regulated services to the public other than in the course of her employment / inadvertent but serious technical breach of s 9(1) / lawfully provided trust administration services prior to admission / Lawyers and Conveyancers Act 2006, section 9(1) / HELD / continued to carry on trust administration while employed as solicitor / mitigating factors include unintentional breach, conduct stopped in 2015, and otherwise blameless record / name suppression declined as threshold to displace presumption of open justice not reached / risk to current firm is slight / Tribunal ordered censure / practitioner to pay Standards Committee’s and Tribunal’s costs