Mr D was instructed to act in a civil litigation matter. He was a senior lawyer but was unfamiliar with the discovery process under the High Court Rules. Due to past experience and psychological sequelae to other events, he did not feel able to seek assistance from others at his firm. He failed to report to his client properly and acted without instructions by agreeing a to an “unless” order which led to the claim being struck out. He also unintentionally misled the Court that he had instructions to agree to that order. Mr D’s firm were able to promptly rectify the matter for the client, however. Mr D accepted he had misconducted himself and that it was serious conduct. 

The Tribunal found the conduct was out of character and Mr D was otherwise a highly competent and committed lawyer. It noted that Mr D had immediately accepted responsibility, self-reported to the Law Society and stepped away from practice. He also took sought professional help to address the underlying issues. These actions provided reassurance that the conduct would not be repeated if Mr D returned to practice. The Tribunal had regard to the significant impact of the conduct on Mr D and noted his “remorse and regret were palpable”.  

The Tribunal found a fine in the broad range of $6,000 to $10,000 would have been appropriate had it not been for the mitigating factors. In particular, the Tribunal noted that Mr D had been out of the workforce for two years and had health issues. The Tribunal declined to make an order that Mr D be prohibited from practising on own account unless authorised to do. The Tribunal censured Mr D and ordered him to pay costs. In addition, the Tribunal made a permanent name suppression order in respect of Mr D.