Latest news with #disbarment
CTV News
2 days ago
- General
- CTV News
Veteran B.C. lawyer disbarred, found ‘ungovernable' by law society, again
A veteran Kamloops, B.C., lawyer has been disbarred for the second time in just over a year after the provincial law society once again found him 'ungovernable' by the standards of the profession. Nickolaus Harold MacDonald Weiser was suspended at least a half-dozen times in his legal career before he was first disbarred from practising in March 2024. The official reprimands did not appear to slow him down, however, prompting a Law Society of B.C. panel to issue a second disbarment decision this week and order him to pay more than $6,700 in costs. The disciplinary panel found Weiser's behaviour 'illustrated culpable neglect for his duties as a lawyer,' the law society said in a statement Wednesday, after the latest ruling was delivered. Because Weiser was already disbarred once before and has not been reinstated by the regulator, he is considered a former member of the law society. But that doesn't protect him from further professional repercussions, according to the tribunal's decision. 'Discipline over former members is an important part of maintaining the public's confidence in the legal profession,' the decision says. 'Former members cannot avoid discipline by simply ceasing their membership and avoiding the consequences of their misconduct.' The society suspended Weiser multiple times between 2021 and 2023, eventually handing him a three-month suspension for practising while suspended and failing to co-operate with investigators. In June 2022, he came under investigation for allegedly using a trust account to disguise proceeds he had earned from an unlicensed cannabis business, according to the society. Then in February 2024, Weiser was suspended for eight months for failing to act with integrity, and acting in multiple conflicts of interest. Weiser was first disbarred last year after he was found to have committed at least six instances of professional misconduct, including breaching accounting rules, using a trust account for personal financial benefit and making misleading representations about his conduct to the law society. 'In addition to misleading the law society during the investigation, as to conceal the misuse of his trust account, Weiser set out to document a fabricated narrative about legitimate loans in order to prevent the law society learning about or investigating the misconduct,' the professional regulator said in a March 2024 statement. In its most recent decision, the panel said it was at a loss to explain Weiser's continued failure to adhere to its disciplinary orders. The former lawyer did not participate in the hearing process, neither in person nor in writing. 'There is some indication of mental health concerns, but no evidence submitted to explain the delay,' the decision says. Weiser began practising law in B.C. in 1984. In 2023, a custodian was appointed by the B.C. Supreme Court to manage what remained of his practice.
CBC
3 days ago
- Politics
- CBC
'Most embarrassing moment of my life': Calgary lawyers who had Manitoba judge followed fight disbarment
Social Sharing The two Calgary lawyers who hired a private investigator in 2021 to follow a Manitoba judge who'd been presiding over their court challenge of COVID-19 public health restrictions should be disbarred for their dishonourable professional conduct, argued a prosecutor for the Law Society of Alberta on Wednesday. The law society hearing is underway this week to determine what sanctions will be imposed against John Carpay and Jay Cameron, lawyers who work for the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms. Carpay is the organization's president. Cameron was working in private practice and was retained by the justice centre. While law society lawyer Karl Seidenz asked the panel to impose the "maximum sanction" of disbarment, lawyers for the two men are fighting to keep them employed in their chosen profession, arguing the pair have already faced significant consequences. 'Professional disgrace' Cameron's lawyer, Alex Steigerwald, told the court that his client's reputation is "irreversibly tarnished" and said he had "experienced professional disgrace." "The consequences of his actions have already been severe," argued Steigerwald, telling the panel that Cameron is the sole breadwinner for his family and hasn't been able to practise law since 2022. Steigerwald asked the law society to impose a suspension that would run concurrently with the three-year Canada-wide practising prohibition, issued by a Manitoba judge, which is set to expire in October 2026. Carpay's lawyer, Alain Hepner, also asked the law society panel to impose a suspension. "This is a case of an error in judgment for which he's apologized," said Hepner. The panel reserved its decision. Carpay testifies As part of the misconduct hearing, Carpay was called to testify. Carpay called the decision to hire a PI "the worst error in judgment I've ever made in my legal career." In the spring and summer of 2021, the justice centre was involved in a court case challenging COVID-19 restrictions, presided over by Manitoba Justice Glenn Joyal. On June 1, 2021, photos were released of then-Alberta premier Jason Kenney dining with several of his top ministers on the patio of a government building nicknamed Sky Palace. Although restrictions had been recently relaxed, there were questions about whether the politicians were properly distanced and/or having indoor encounters as well. A week later, Cameron, the lead litigator in the court challenge to the constitutionality of public health orders, emailed Carpay, suggesting the justice centre hire a PI in hopes of catching Joyal and others breaching government-imposed restrictions. "We know most of these jokers aren't following their own laws," wrote Cameron. 'Most embarrassing moment of my life' Carpay went ahead and hired an investigator, instructing him to follow Joyal, Manitoba's chief medical officer of health and the premier. On July 12, 2021, Justice Joyal called the parties into court after he noticed he was being followed. The judge also learned that the private investigator had, days earlier, sent a teenage boy to knock on his door. The boy spoke with the judge's daughter but when she asked who he was, he "got nervous" and ran to a waiting car. When confronted in court that day, Carpay admitted to the judge that he'd hired a PI. "Monday, July 12, 2021, is probably the most embarrassing moment of my life," Cameron said while being questioned by Hepner. 'I've paid a very heavy price' Carpay testified that he's apologized numerous times, to numerous people, including a letter written to Justice Joyal. The decision to have the judge followed was a "grave error in judgment," he said. "I've paid a very heavy price for this." Carpay and Cameron were ultimately arrested and charged with obstruction of justice and intimidation of a justice system participant. In 2023, the pair entered into a peace bond, the conditions of which include a three-year ban on practising law in Canada. In exchange, their criminal charges were withdrawn. In that case, the judge who accepted the peace bond called the men's actions "unprofessional, unethical and dishonourable," and said their behaviour was "nothing short of an affront on the administration of justice." Carpay 'traumatized' by arrest While Carpay says he's remorseful, he stood by his denouncement of the criminal prosecution, calling it "utterly baseless" and "politically motivated." After his arrest, Carpay spent nearly a full day in custody. "I was quite traumatized by the whole experience of being locked up for 23 hours," he told the panel. The men also faced Law Society of Manitoba citations. As part of those proceedings, both men were banned for life from practising law in that province. And they agreed to each pay a $5,000 fine. On top of that, Carpay said he has had to fork out "tens of thousands of dollars in legal bills." Lawyers deleted evidence In 2023, Carpay tendered his resignation from the Law Society of Alberta. In arguing for disbarment, the lawyer for the law society pointed out Cameron and Carpay's post-offence conduct, which involved deleting evidence. After he appeared before Joyal in July 2021, Carpay instructed Cameron and the PI to delete all communications and to refrain from speaking to police. During questioning on Wednesday, Carpay said he didn't recall that instruction. "You don't recall advising the person in charge of the litigation to delete evidence?" questioned Seidenz.
