Wynne says the province “will work with” the Law Society of Upper Canada to address questions about the quality of its investigations and response into complaints against lawyers.
RACHEL MENDLESON
/ TORONTO STAR
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John Cottrell, a forensic auditor who worked for the Law Society of
Upper Canada from 2007 to 2011, spoke out about his concerns about the
law society's high monthly case quotas, which he said made it difficult
for investigators to conduct thorough probes of possible lawyer
misconduct.
Premier Kathleen Wynne
says the province “will work with” the Law Society of Upper Canada to
address questions about whether the professional regulator is adequately
protecting the public from bad lawyers.
In the wake of
troubling revelations about the quality of investigations into
complaints against lawyers in Ontario, Wynne expressed concern about the
issue. Wednesday, a former forensic auditor for the law society became the latest voice to speak out
against a gag order that prevents investigators from sharing
information with police, and said probes are thwarted by heavy
caseloads.
Wynne told reporters it is a matter she wants her government to tackle.
“The attorney general and our government will work with the law society,” Wynne told reporters at Queen’s Park on Wednesday.
“Obviously, I want
people to have the information that they need. I want all of the issues
around privacy to be in place and to be protected,” she said. “But it’s
very important to me that people get information in a timely way.”
The premier’s office
declined to elaborate on what steps the province would take. But
spokeswoman Zita Astravas said in an email the attorney general
regularly meets with the law society on many matters, including this
one. “As you know the Attorney General and the Law Society want to
ensure that there is a proper and fair system in place.”
In a rare move, John
Cottrell, who worked as a forensic auditor in the law society’s
investigations department from 2007 to 2011, spoke out about his
experience, saying he believed it was his “public duty” to do so.
Cottrell told the Star
that investigators were overwhelmed with too many cases and under
pressure to meet monthly targets and close files quickly. He said he
disagreed with confidentiality rules that, he claimed, prohibited
investigators from sharing information about suspected criminal activity
with law enforcement.
Law society treasurer
Janet Minor said in an email Wednesday that “the Law Society recognizes
the importance of transparency and disclosure as part of its public
interest mandate. We will continue to work with the (attorney general)
to ensure that the practices and procedures in place effectively
accomplish these goals. We are always looking for improvements that can
benefit the public and the professions.”
Sylvia Jones, the
Progressive Conservative critic for the Attorney General, has condemned
the government for keeping the public “in the dark.”
“When there is no
collaboration with law enforcement, there is a greater chance that
justice for victims in these cases may be ignored,” Jones told the Star.
“The Liberals like to talk about transparency and accountability, but
really just prefer to look the other way.”
NDP justice critic
Jagmeet Singh is calling for “a concrete plan” to respond to the Star’s
ongoing probe of how the law society disciplines its members.
“I think, by and
large, the law society is executing its duties well, but these
circumstances certainly are troubling,” said Singh, a criminal lawyer
and a member of the law society. “As a lawyer, I feel personally
interested in ensuring that people have confidence in the administration
of justice … More needs to be done.”
Earlier this year, a Star investigation
revealed that more than 230 lawyers were sanctioned by the law society
over the past decade for criminal-like activity. While most were
reprimanded, suspended or disbarred by that body, fewer than one in five
were charged criminally, the Star found.
The former head of
discipline for the law society, a police officer who investigated fraud
by lawyers, and numerous victims have told the Star they believe the
profession’s regulator should report bad lawyers to law enforcement.
This week, law society
spokesman Roy Thomas said investigators are up to the challenge of
conducting “comprehensive and timely investigations” required to protect
the public interest.
Thomas said the law
society cooperates with police and reports to “appropriate authorities,
including police, through a designated process.”
Rachel Mendleson can be reached at 416-869-4059 or rmendleson@thestar.ca
With files from Kenyon Wallace
Source: http://www.thestar.com/news/queenspark/2014/10/01/premier_kathleen_wynne_pledges_action_on_issue_of_rogue_lawyers_star_investigation.html
Source: http://www.thestar.com/news/queenspark/2014/10/01/premier_kathleen_wynne_pledges_action_on_issue_of_rogue_lawyers_star_investigation.html
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