Professional Documents
Culture Documents
CACV 20/2014
and CACV 78/2014
(Heard together)
and
BETWEEN
L
A SOLICITOR
and
Appellant
Respondent
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and
C
BETWEEN
THE LAW SOCIETY OF HONG KONG
Appellant
and
A SOLICITOR
Respondent
(Heard together)
________________
JUDGMENT
________________
1.
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time frames.
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2.
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6 June 2013.
bearing in mind that there is no appeal against the finding of guilt by the
summarise it as follows:
(a)
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(b)
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(c)
out in a letter of the same date. One of the conditions was that
the draft Assignment had to be approved by the HA.
(d)
a will for the husband and he executed the same on that date.
Under that will, the father of the husband was the sole
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(e)
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(f)
(g)
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(h)
(i)
Registry.
Land Registry.
3.
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had told the parties that there would probably be amendments from the HA.
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incorporating whatever amendments from the HA into the final version and
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they orally gave him authority to do so. The Solicitor regarded this as
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execution in escrow.
4.
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5.
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date and that the parties could not withdraw from it. They described these
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have accepted that the Solicitor had informed the parties of the likelihood
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6.
Q
Solicitor had acted in breach of Principle 6.01 of the Hong Kong Solicitors
Guide to Professional Conduct and Rule 2(a), (c) and (e) of the Solicitors
st
Practice Rules, which was the 1 Complaint in the Complaint Sheet. The
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7.
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finding of guilt on this complaint, it had been abandoned by the time of the
hearing before us. The appeal in CACV 20 of 2014 by the Solicitor is
nd
confined to the appeal against the finding of guilt under the 2 complaint.
D
8.
this court for that appeal to be brought. The Law Society said the penalty
submitted that the proper sentence is the striking off, or alternatively the
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9.
2007. Those events stemmed from the transaction in the first complaint.
father wrote to the Solicitor complaining about the latters handling of the
matter in 1999 to 2000. Believing the assignment to be valid and that he
had inherited the property as part of the estate of the deceased husband, the
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father paid off the mortgage over the property. Subsequently, due to the
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On
27 November 2006, WFC wrote another letter informing the Solicitor that
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due to concerns for the limitation period, legal proceedings had been
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initiated.
10.
crux of the second complaint is in respect of the Solicitors dealing with the
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Insurer over this claim. As the Solicitor is appealing against the finding of
guilt in respect of this second complaint, we need to go into greater details
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11.
B
Please note that you should always act as a prudent uninsured and
take no steps which might prejudice Insurers position. Please
keep us informed of any future developments.
12.
Then on
7 December 2006, the Solicitor sent a draft reply to WFC to the Insurer for
13.
between the
Solicitor and
WFC
from 11
December
2006
to
25 January 2007 which the former did not copy or disclose to the Insurer
K
In the letter of 15 December 2006, WFC set out an offer for settlement of
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their client (viz the Father) in the sum of $644,707.60 with breakdown
showing this to be the total amount of costs and expenses incurred by the
14.
On condition that your client or any third party has not in any
manner created any incumbrances or charges whatsoever on the
Property from 23rd April 2004 onwards to date, we are prepared
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to fully and finally settle the above matter with your client (Mr
Chan Yam Ping) on the following terms:
1. Without admission of any fault on our part or Mr Wan Hok
Wai, Henrys part, we are to pay to you HK$540,000 upon
your clients execution of the requested Deed/documents as
herein mentioned. The amount of HK$540,000 is for the
assignment of all your clients interest in the amount spent on
the discharge on the mortgage/legal charges registered by
memorial no. TM657667. Your client shall execute a Deed of
Assignment to give effect of such assignment in favour of our
Mr Wan and/or his nominees.
ii)
iii)
iv)
v)
i)
2. Your client shall use his best endeavour and provide his full
reasonable assistance/co-operation to us in procuring Ms Ma
Suk Ching to liaise with us for further handling of the
Property.
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i)
ii)
iii)
iv)
Mr Wan Hok Wai, Henry shall in return bear all future taxes
and outgoings whether capital or recurrent in nature relating
to the Property.
15.
16.
th
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1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
17.
the draft open reply to WFC and the Solicitor issued the same on
8 January 2007.
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18.
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19.
to the Insurer.
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20.
21.
evidence from a junior partner in his firm and Cheng, a solicitor in WFC,
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consider their evidence in our analysis of the appeal on the 2nd Complaint
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because a major ground of appeal is the failure of the Tribunal to assess the
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offered by the Solicitor were simply not acceptable. The negotiation in the
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22.
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his firm was seeking approval from the Insurer to settle. He also said:
In the meantime, could you please provide us with [the ex-wife]s
(or her solicitors) contact details. Alternatively, we shall be
grateful if you would be kind enough to ask [the ex-wife] or her
solicitors to contact us with a view to make some efforts to
resolve the matter in the best interest of all parties concerned.
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23.
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as follows:
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D
th
24.
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22 December 2008. In respect of the dealings between the Solicitor and the
Insurer, it summed up its allegation against the Solicitor as follows at p.5 of
that letter:
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25.
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the Solicitor for breach of Principle 13.01 of the Guide and Rule 2(a) of the
Solicitors Practice Rules by concealing or failing to disclose to the Insurer
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in the matter.
26.
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complaint.
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27.
court, the Law Society appealed against the penalty imposed on this
complaint in CACV 78 of 2014.
The finding of guilt under the 2nd Complaint: CACV 20 of 2014
29.
28.
and it was on that basis that the case was conducted before the Tribunal.
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Had a different charge been laid, the conduct of the defence case may well
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have been different and the evidence might have taken a different course.
respect of a charge that had not been laid, whether before the Tribunal or
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this court.
30.
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That you, Wan Hok Wai, Henry, have been in breach of Principle
13.01 of the Hong Kong Solicitors Guide to Professional
Conduct (the Guide), Volume 1, 2nd Edition and Rule 2(a) of
the Solicitors Practice Rules by concealing or failing to disclose
to the Hong Kong Solicitors Indemnity Fund Limited (the Fund)
that as part of your proposed settlement with the Claimant, you
would obtain a personal interest in the Property.
31.
shall not set out those particulars at length here. We however note the
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following:
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(a)
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(b)
settlement terms;
Insurer, the case of the Law Society was put this way,
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(c)
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(i)
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(ii)
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the settlement.
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(d)
32.
summarized:
13.01 of the Guide and Rule 2(a) of the Solicitors Practice Rules, we need
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to analyse how those rules are applicable in the present circumstances. The
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Fair dealing
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34.
35.
providing for, amongst other things, the professional practice, conduct and
36.
not give any legal advice to the Insurer. Though the Solicitor was only able
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may say that the making of a claim under the professional indemnity
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37.
13.01 the Solicitor could be said to have made use of his position as a
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solicitor to take unfair advantage for himself since he did not act as the
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the Insurer.
38.
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deceitful.
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39.
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acting in breach of Rule 2(a) if he had done anything in his dealings with
the Insurer which compromises or impairs or is likely to compromise or
40.
proposed
Findings.
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42.
nd
Complaint.
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43.
B
properly assessed the evidence and the defence case before they came to
this view.
44.
The defence case was that though the Solicitor had reported
to settle out of his own pocket and he would only claim for indemnity from
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other terms which did not give him any personal benefit for the Insurer to
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who acted for the father at that period, is of great significance as she had no
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46.
negotiations regarding the terms set out in the letter of 27 December 2006
had been terminated in early January 2007. She stated at 10 and 11.
Q
10.
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1
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11.
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47.
13.
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48.
the initial stage, she was told that the Solicitor intended to pay out of his
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own pocket 2. She confirmed that the initial negotiations ended in early
January 2007 and the term proposed on 25 January 2007 was the
unconditional payment of $540,000 and the son of her client was pressing
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49.
Q
2nd Complaint as analysed above and the evidence before the Tribunal, in
our judgment in order to establish that the Solicitor acted with fraudulent or
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S
2
3
4
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(a)
B
(b)
50.
the Solicitor could be said to have obtained any personal interest in the
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property from the settlement (even assuming that the terms of settlement
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against the background that by that stage, the HA had confirmed to WFC
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and the father that the 2000 Assignment was invalid (thus the father could
not have assigned any interest in the property to the Solicitor), and this
51.
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52.
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47.
48.
53.
unsatisfactory:
Q
(a)
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(b)
subsequent events;
Yet, the Tribunal did not discuss her evidence about these
(c)
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It is not clear at all why the Tribunal said at 47 that the father
had not changed his position since 27 December 2006. That
was directly contradicted by the evidence of Cheng and her
(d)
behalf of the firm against the background that the Solicitor (as
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(e)
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Further at 48, the Tribunal had put the cart before the horse
by referring to the subjective belief of the Solicitor in terms of
what he might be able to achieve as opposed to making the
By the use of the phrase if at all known to the Respondent in relation to the conversation between
Cheng and the junior solicitor.
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(f)
E
In any event, we are of the view that the Tribunal had read too
much into the last paragraph in the letter of 25 January 2007
from the Solicitor to WFC. It is not possible to infer from the
request for having the contact details of the ex-wife that the
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(g)
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(h)
The Tribunal had not dealt with the defence case that at the
Insurer; and
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(i)
B
54.
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Society, and in view of her role in the whole incident, we cannot find any
cogent reason for rejecting her evidence.
55.
professional man, it must at least deal with the major issues in the
disputes.
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56.
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not below), defended the finding of guilt under the 2nd Complaint by the
following contentions:
(a)
January 2007;
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(b)
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(c)
(d)
and
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(e)
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The 2
nd
57.
in the property that the Solicitor would acquire under the proposed
Court of Final Appeal in Cheuk Shu Yin v Yip So Wan (2012) 15 HKCFAR
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344 to support his argument that the Solicitor could acquire an interest in
the property from the father.
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58.
B
Cheng, it could not have reached a proper conclusion on the defence case
D
that the settlement proposed to the Insurer on 25 January 2007 did not
include any term for the father to transfer any rights to the Solicitor as a
condition for the payment of $540,000.
intent on the part of the Solicitor when he communicated to the Insurer the
offer according to the terms on the table as at 25 January 2007. The charge
is not established simply because the Solicitor had concealed the earlier
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correspondence.
59.
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property from the settlement. The co-operation of the father in the intended
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negotiations with the ex-wife was not an interest in the property. And
according to the evidence of Cheng, whilst the Solicitor might have a hope
in procuring the co-operation of the father, that was not a term for the
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60.
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the property stemming from the various payments by the father towards it.
We do not have the full picture in that regard and we are not going to
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speculate whether the father could have claimed an equitable interest in the
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344.
61.
D
finding of guilt in respect of the 2nd Complaint. We shall allow the appeal
(b)
with the junior partner, the Solicitor knew that the only offer on
the table as at 25 January 2007 was the unconditional payment
of $540,000;
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(c)
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We do not see any cogent basis for holding that the offer he
(d)
(e)
and
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(f)
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nd
the decision of the Tribunal in respect of the 2nd Complaint. We will also
63.
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st
64.
st
65.
66.
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1st Complaint, and the nature of the appeal before us (being an appeal
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against penalty but not against finding of guilt), we think the proper course
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67.
imposed by the Tribunal was clearly wrong. Though this court will give
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68.
N
This has been cited with approval by Fok JA (as he then was)
in Hong Kong in Chan Cheuk Chi v The Registrar of the Hong Kong
Institute
of
Certified
Public
Accountants
CACV
38
of
2012,
8 February 2013. In that case, the court adopted the clearly wrong test.
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69.
.An order that the solicitor be struck off the Roll of Solicitor
is appropriate where dishonesty is involved.
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2.
B
3.
4.
E
5.
(c) To ensure that the offender will not have the opportunity to
repeat the offence.
6.
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7.
70.
these principles. Subject to the question whether striking off could be the
for the rationale for these sentences, for our part we would place more
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71.
Hong Kong, supra, should now be read together with what we said above
72.
should re-visit the question whether striking off should be confined to cases
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was such restriction laid down. In Bolton, supra, the Master of the Rolls
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said at p.518D to E:
If a solicitor is not shown to have acted dishonestly, but is shown
to have fallen below the required standards of integrity, probity
and trustworthiness, his lapse is less serious but it remains very
serious indeed in a member of a profession whose reputation
depends upon trust. A striking off order will not necessarily
follow in such a case, but it may well. The decision whether to
strike off or to suspend will often involve a fine and difficult
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73.
defaulting solicitor.
74.
26.
The principle identified in Bolton means that in cases
where there has been a lapse of standards of integrity, probity and
trustworthiness a solicitor should expect to be struck off. Such
cases will vary in severity. It is commonplace, in mitigation,
either at first instance or on appeal, whether the forum is a
criminal court or a disciplinary body, for the defendant to contend
that his case is not as serious as others. That may well be true.
But the submission is of little assistance. If a solicitor has shown
lack of integrity, probity or trustworthiness, he cannot resist
striking off by pointing out that there are others who have been
struck off, who were guilty of far more serious offences. The
very fact that an absence of integrity, probity or trustworthiness
may well result in striking off, even though dishonesty is not
proved, explains why the range of those who should be struck off
will be wide. Their offences will vary in gravity. Striking off is
the most serious sanction but it is not reserved for offences of
dishonesty.
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22.
I turn to do so on an understanding as to the position of
the solicitor. It is not necessary to set out statements as to the
position and esteem in which the profession is held and the
importance of the highest professional standards. Those are set
out in the judgments of Sir Thomas Bingham MR, as he then was,
in the well-known case of Bolton v Law Society [1994] 1 WLR
512 and again in his decision in Weston v the Law Society
reported in the Times 15 July 1998, when Sir Thomas Bingham
spoke of standards of integrity, probity and trustworthiness.
In Western he made clear that trustworthiness did not merely
refer to honesty, but also the duty arising from holding someone
else's money.
75.
23.
It seems to me that trustworthiness also extends to those
standards which the public are entitled to expect of a solicitor,
including competence.
If a solicitor exhibits manifest
incompetence, as, in my judgment, the appellant did, then it is
impossible to see how the public can have confidence in a person
who has exhibited such incompetence. It is difficult to see how a
profession such as the medical profession would countenance
retaining as a doctor someone who had showed himself to be
incompetent. It seems to me that the same must be true of the
solicitors' profession. If in a course of conduct a person
manifests incompetence as, in my judgment, the appellant did,
then he is not fit to be a solicitor. The only appropriate remedy is
to remove him from the roll. It must be recalled that being a
solicitor is not a right, but a privilege. The public is entitled not
only to solicitors who behave with honesty and integrity, but
solicitors in whom they can impose trust by reason of
competence.
year and there was no change to the sentence for the second complaint.
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The court was of the view that the solicitor had fallen below the required
standard of integrity, probity and trustworthiness 6.
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6
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76.
B
It is not clear from the report whether striking off was argued
as an option in that case. Since it was an appeal by the solicitor against the
penalty of 2-year suspension and the court reduced it to 1-year suspension,
it would appear that the proper criteria for ordering a striking off might not
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have been subject to full arguments in that case. We therefore regard the
comments in those regards at 61 of that judgment as obiter. Even so, what
77.
Kong authorities but not English authorities, counsel did not put forward
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respect.
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78.
With great respect, we are of the view that there is room for
Hong Kong, supra, in term of striking off is, strictly speaking, only obiter,
we do not have to say that it is plainly wrong before we depart from it.
79.
80.
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view that the penalty imposed by the Tribunal is clearly wrong, we do not
appropriate penalty should be a suspension for two years with the condition
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solicitors firm until the Law Society is satisfied that he is fit to do so.
81.
Tribunal. However, we are of the firm view that the penalty of a fine of
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dealing with the matter on the basis that there was no dishonesty on the part
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of the Solicitor and he had indeed explained to the parties who executed the
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HA. Even so, it is a very serious matter to change the contents of the
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were. It is all the more serious when, at the time of the swapping of the
pages, one of the party had passed away. Moreover, the document was an
whom they can impose trust by reason of competence. What the Solicitor
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did was also a gross dereliction of his duty towards the HA.
82.
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duties and gross incompetence, the public would lose confidence in our
conveyancing
system which
depends
substantially
on
high
and
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83.
B
In our view, the fact that the Solicitor did not derive personal
even without such elements, as in the present case, it is still a very serious
matter for a solicitor to swap pages in a conveyancing document and then
have it registered at the Land Registry. The Solicitor should appreciate that
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there are other people who would rely on the document and the fact that it
was prepared and registered by a solicitor. It should have been obvious to
84.
suffer financial loss. He had also created problems in respect of the title to
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the property which the ex-wife and the father had to go through litigation to
resolve (with costs and time engaged in the process as well). This is by no
85.
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CACV 78 of 2014, set aside the penalty imposed by the Tribunal in respect
above. We also make a costs order nisi that the Solicitor shall pay the Law
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86.
to the title of these proceedings. By reason of Order 106 Rule 12(1), the
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restriction is in line with the current concept of open justice and the High
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(M H Lam)
Vice President
(Aarif Barma)
Justice of Appeal
(Ian McWalters)
Justice of Appeal