Law Times

PAGE 16 WillBuilder Tel: 416.322.6111 Toll-free: 1.866.367.7648 doprocess com ntitled-7 1 The CHEQUE SCAM TARGETS CASSELS BROCK Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP has found itself the victim of a cheque-fraud scam south of the border. Lisa Martineau, chief finan- cial officer at the firm, says she began getting calls a few weeks ago from real estate and law offices, mostly in the United States, that had come across fraudulent cheques bearing the Cassels Brock logo. "It's not a very good copy of our cheque," says Martineau. "But in the interests of prevent- ing anyone from falling for this scheme that is going on, we put an alert out so that people would immediately know there is an issue there." Martineau says most cases involve an individual who con- tacts the real estate agent by e-mail and arranges to purchase a property without a face-to- face meeting. The bogus Cassels Brock cheque then arrives for an amount significantly higher than the deposit requires with a note to send the excess funds to a furniture company to furnish the home. "They're hoping someone will deposit the funds and cut a cheque to them for the balance," Martineau says, adding nobody has fallen for the scheme to her knowledge. "They're preying on the U.S. market, with realtors so hungry for business." Martineau says the firm has recorded instances in Virginia and Colorado as well as one in Windsor, Ont. She notes each incident is reported to Toronto police and the local force where the cheque is received, but so far they have turned up nothing. Toronto police Const. Elisa Brooker says because the investigation is ongoing, she can't comment on it. Martineau says the names on the suspect e-mails, none of which have any connection to the firm, have been consis- tent and warns anyone hearing from Dr. Takeuchi Keigo, Mr. Wakabayashi Hisaki, Mr. Ming Xing, Mr. Peter Smith, Andrew St. Clair, Dr. Soho Yakamushi, Reinventing the Will www 1/26/09 3:38:37 PM Inside Story Charles Francis or Ibrahim Tanko to be on guard. "These people are playing on the Internet, so why it's our firm today and another firm tomorrow, I have no idea," Martineau says. OTTAWA LAWYER LAUDED BY WOMEN'S NETWORK Brenda Hollingsworth, a partner at Ottawa's Auger Hollingsworth, has been named the Women's Business Network of Ottawa's Businesswoman of the Year for 2009 in the profes- sional category. Hollingsworth, a personal injury lawyer who owns the firm with her husband Richard Auger, received the award at a gala on April 29. "A dozen years ago, when I was a young lawyer thinking about how I would manage having kids and my career, I was discour- aged," Hollingsworth said. "With a lot of support and encourage- ment from my husband, a decade later I am telling a different story, one where a very rewarding and full family life is compatible not only with a busy law practice but also with business ownership." AMSTERDAM & PEROFF LANDS UNIQUE CLIENT Toronto-based international law firm Amsterdam & Peroff LLP has announced its latest cli- ent: former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra. The firm will assist the former prime minister in his attempt to boost his Red Shirt supporters, who are staging demonstrations in Bangkok, the country's capital. "It is our intention to explore every legal avenue to assist this pro-democracy movement and urge the international commu- nity not to tolerate the govern- ment's violent crackdown on peaceful protesters," said found- ing partner Robert Amsterdam. Thaksin was ousted from power in a military coup in 2006 amid allegations of abuse of power and corruption. LT For more Inside Story, please visit www.lawtimesnews.com. [LegalSTEPS® – the new conveyancing "OK! Let 'er go! It's been certified!" application designed by you. Extensive consultation and testing with real estate law firms during development have led to an application design that streamlines real estate transactions in an intuitive manner. With LegalSTEPS®, you can easily complete real estate documents and order title insurance from one flexible, customizable application. Contact us to book a demo: 1-888-667-5151 www.stewart.ca/legalsteps Untitled-1 1 www.lawtimesnews.com 2/3/10 2:55:19 PM Powered by: ] MOTHER OF 15 FORGETS CHILD AT WAL-MART CINCINNATI, Ohio — A woman has been charged after allegedly leaving one of her 15 children at a Wal- Mart store. Three-year-old Binah Isra- el followed several groups of shoppers around the store af- ter allegedly being left behind by her mother, 43-year-old Moriyyah Israel. After store security noticed one of the groups she was following was leaving the store without her, they intervened before real- izing the group didn't know who the girl was. In an at- tempt to find Binah's mother, several announcements were made over the store's public address system before police were finally called. As if that wasn't bad enough, the mother allegedly didn't even realize she was missing until the next day and only after a relative informed her she had seen the girl on the news. The mother now faces a charge of child endan- germent, a misdemeanor. DRUNK ENJOYS SOAK IN STRANGERS' TUB NAPERVILLE, Ill. — A long soak in your hot tub is often a good way to cap off a night of drinking. But in a stranger's hot tub? Maybe not. A Naperville couple got a rude awakening when they ™ May 17, 2010 • Law TiMes Bizarre Briefs By Viola James woke up to a man parking his car in their driveway. Af- ter knocking at their window, he allegedly stripped off his clothes and hopped into their outdoor hot tub. Police were called and when they arrived, they allegedly found a man, identified as Brian J. Haney, 30, submerged in the water and very drunk. When they pulled him out, he seemed "genuinely perplexed" and asked officers what the prob- lem was, Sgt. Gregg Bell told the Naperville Sun. Haney was taken to the police station after the offi- cers found his clothes while a tow truck was called to re- move his car from the drive- way. The homeowners insist they don't know Haney, who has been charged with disor- derly conduct and attempted criminal damage to property without an owner's consent. MAN JAILED FOR TATTOOING BABY LOUISVILLE, Ky. — It might have seemed like a good idea at the time: tat- tooing the buttocks of a one- year-old child. Unfortunately for 20-year- old Lee M. Deitrick, for the next three years he'll be the one receiving the punish- ment. The mother, a friend of Deitrick's, had left the baby at his home while she went to visit someone in the hospital. During that time, Deitrick decided to try his hand at tat- too artistry. As a 17-year-old relative of the child held her on her lap, Deitrick pulled out his tattoo equipment and proceeded to draw the outline of the letter A on her bottom. Deitrick pleaded guilty to two felony child-endanger- ment charges as part of a plea bargain, which will see him serve three years in prison. TEACHER ENJOYS BEER DURING A.M. CLASS CHESTERFIELD COUN- TY, Va. — A substitute teach- er who allegedly kept beer in a coffee Thermos is facing several charges after being re- ported to the principal by a group of third-graders. Sabrina Pado, 50, was teaching a third-grade class at an elementary school when several students noticed something wasn't quite right. Cyrus Mom, a student who sits next to the teacher's desk, told CBS 6 there was a strong odour of beer in the class- room. The smell of alcohol was reportedly so strong that one young girl became ill. Pado, who according to police was well beyond three sheets to the wind when she arrived at the school, was al- legedly concealing the beer in a Thermos typically used to hold coffee. She has been charged with being drunk in public and having alcohol on school property. LT Seen, heard, or been involved in a bizarre brief? Tell Viola James about it at viola.james@gmail. com.

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