Central Standards Committee 3 v Meyrick [2018] NZLCDT 14 (3 May 2018)

Last Updated: 31 August 2018

NEW ZEALAND LAWYERS AND CONVEYANCERS DISCIPLINARY TRIBUNAL

[2018] NZLCDT 14 LCDT 022/17 & 040/17

IN THE MATTER of the Lawyers and Conveyancers

Act 2006

BETWEEN CENTRAL STANDARDS COMMITTEE 3

Applicant

AND MICHAEL BRIAN MEYRICK

Respondent

CHAIR

Judge BJ Kendall (retired)

MEMBERS OF TRIBUNAL

Mr G McKenzie Ms C Rowe

Mr W Smith Mr I Williams

HEARING 22 March 2018

HELD AT Specialist Courts and Tribunals Centre, Auckland

DATE OF DECISION 3 May 2018

COUNSEL

Ms N Copeland for the applicant The respondent in person

DECISION OF THE NEW ZEALAND LAWYERS AND CONVEYANCERS DISCIPLINARY TRIBUNAL CONCERNING CHARGES

Charge One

[1] On 28 June 2017, the applicant charged the respondent with misconduct for failing to comply with fines and costs orders imposed by the Lawyers Standards Committees and the Legal Complaints Review Officer (LCRO). The respondent was charged in the alternative with unsatisfactory conduct.1

Charge Two

[2] On 24 November 2017, the applicant further charged the respondent with misconduct for wilfully or recklessly contravening the regulations in relation to his conduct in making false declarations to the New Zealand Law Society about his compliance with fines and costs orders imposed by Standards Committees and the LCRO. There is an alternative charge of unsatisfactory conduct.2

[3] The respondent filed responses denying the charges. He did not file any affidavit evidence to support his denials of the charges. There was a direction that he do so seven days prior to the confirmed hearing date. He did not comply with that direction given at a teleconference on 2 October 2017 and again at a teleconference on 25 January 2018.

[4] The applicant’s evidence in respect of Charge One regarding the respondent’s failure to comply with fines and costs orders is summarised as follows:

1 Lawyers and Conveyancers Act 2006, s 7(1)(a)(1) or s 7(1)(a)(ii).

2 See above n 1 and r 4 and/or r 8 of the Lawyers and Conveyancers Act (Lawyers: Practice Rules) Regulations 2008.

(a) Pecuniary orders were imposed by Standards Committees and the LCRO between December 2010 and December 2016 after various disciplinary findings were made against him.

(b) As at January 2017 the respondent owed a total sum of $35,000.00 to the Law Society.

(c) The respondent failed to make any payments between May 2015 and February 2017 to reduce the debt despite the Law Society communicating with him about the debt on a number of occasions.

(d) Having entered into a payment arrangement with the Law Society, the respondent stopped making payments under the arrangement on 15 April 2015 and did not respond to the Society’s requests to resume making payments under the arrangement.

(e) In February 2017, the respondent’s employer commenced making weekly payments of $50.00 under an arrangement made with the Law Society. As at 30 June 2017 the debt had been reduced to $33,900.00.

[5] The applicant’s evidence in respect of Charge Two of making false declarations is:

• (a) On 25 June 2015, in support of the application for the renewal of his practising certificate, the respondent declared that he had complied with, or was complying with, any applicable orders of a Standards Committee, the LCRO and the Disciplinary Tribunal.
  
• (b) At the time of making the declaration the respondent owed the Law Society approximately $32,000.00 in costs and fines and had not made any payments to reduce the sum since 15 April 2015.
  
• (c) On 21 June 2016, in support of the application for the renewal of his practising certificate, the respondent declared that he had complied with, or was complying with, any applicable orders of a Standards Committee, the LCRO and the Disciplinary Tribunal.

• (d) At the time of making the declaration the respondent owed the Law Society approximately $32,000.00 in costs and fines and had not made any payments to reduce the sum since 15 April 2015.
  

[6] The respondent filed an affidavit regarding his financial position on 20 March 2018. He also filed a submission addressing the meaning of ‘reckless’. He appeared at the hearing of the charges on 22 March 2018. The respondent addressed the Tribunal stating that he had never seen the affidavits filed in support of the charges.3 Having been sworn in, the respondent said that he had never seen the charges but had discussed them with the Law Society. He also stated that he had not seen the affidavits filed in support of the charges.4

[7] The respondent was challenged about the correctness of his statements. Time was taken up by exchanges between Tribunal members and the respondent on that issue and with the submission from counsel for the applicant that the respondent must have known about the charges.

[8] The Tribunal resolved the issue by giving the respondent the opportunity to read the affidavits and adjourned for that to happen.

[9] When the hearing resumed, the respondent said that he was concerned only with the charge relating to making false declarations.5 He initially challenged the statement that he had ceased making payments since 15 December 2015 and sought an adjournment to be able to produce evidence to prove that the statement was wrong.

[10] The respondent ultimately accepted that the records showed that payments in reduction of the debt ceased on 15 April 2015 and that he would check his own bank statements.6

[11] The respondent submitted that the charge was not made out because he had correctly ticked the boxes on the application form for renewal of practising certificate. When it was pointed out that the respondent was addressing his application for

3 Notes of evidence page 3, lines 14, 30 & 33.

4 Notes of evidence page 12, line 10.

5 Notes of evidence page 16, line 30.

6 Notes of evidence page 20, line 9 and following.

renewal of practising certificate for the 2017 year and that he had filled in online applications for the two previous years, the respondent demanded copies of those forms.

[12] Counsel for the applicant explained the electronic process for completing such forms as described in the affidavit of Mary Ollivier sworn on 22 November 2017 at paragraphs 2.8, 2.9 and 2.10. The essential feature of the process is that when a practitioner fills in the form and answers ‘yes’ to all questions the application for renewal is treated as clean and proceeds to the issue of a practising certificate without further enquiry.

[13] Having had explained the technicalities of the process to it and the respondent, the Tribunal declined the respondent’s request.7

[14] The respondent then required an adjournment which was refused. The respondent answered by saying “Okay, have a nice day, people. Fair enough. I am wasting my time in here. Your minds are made up in advance. There’s nothing I can do about it”. When advised that we would have to proceed in his absence, his response was “Your Honour, you can do what you like”. He then walked out of the hearing without leave and without completing submission.8

Decision

[15] The respondent has not disputed Charge One and has not addressed Charge Two. The Tribunal has considered the evidence in support of the charges and is satisfied that they are proven.

[16] The Tribunal is satisfied that the respondent’s repeated failure to comply with the orders for payment was wilful and amounts to misconduct.

[17] The Tribunal is further satisfied that, in making the declarations the subject of Charge Two, the respondent wilfully breached the rules where he knew or ought to

7 Notes of evidence page 25, lines 21 to 33 and page 26, lines 1 to 3.

8 Notes of evidence page 27.

have known that what he declared was untrue when seeking to renew his practising certificate in 2015 and 2016. Such conduct amounts to misconduct.

[18] The Tribunal notes its concern about the respondent’s lack of respect for the disciplinary process. His response to the Law Society’s own motion investigation regarding the false declarations was dismissive and accused the New Zealand Law Society of hounding him.9

[19] The respondent’s written submissions of 20 March 2018 were particularly vituperative of the Law Society and irrelevant to the subject matter of the charges. Paragraphs 20 to 32 of those submissions are attached as Appendix 1.

[20] The respondent was rude and arrogant to both the Tribunal and the Law Society at the hearing when he was appearing for himself. He displayed a demanding attitude and stated that he was wasting his time before the Tribunal when his demand for an adjournment was refused.10

[21] The Tribunal refers these matters back to the Law Society.

[22] Having found the charges proved, the respondent is, by 15 June 2018, to file submissions in respect of penalty and in reply to the applicant’s memorandum of 4 April 2018, a copy which was sent to him by email on 4 April 2018.

[23] The Tribunal will consider penalty on the papers unless either counsel or the respondent request a hearing on a date to be fixed.

DATED at AUCKLAND this 3rd day of May 2018

BJ Kendall Chairperson

9 See Applicant’s BoD at page 35.

10 Notes of evidence page 27.

Appendix 1