Law Times

Law Times • November 10, 2014 Page 5 www.lawtimesnews.com Regulatory matters Counsel who said he could bribe cops facing LSUC hearing BY SHANNON KARI For Law Times he Law Society of Up- per Canada is mov- ing for an interlocu- tory suspension of a Toronto lawyer found to have demanded $1,000 from a cli- ent's relative so he could "bribe" police to have the charges with- drawn. "There are reasonable grounds to believe that Danish Muhammad Munir discour- aged public confidence in the administration of justice by falsely representing that he is able to undermine the justice system through police bribery," wrote law society discipline counsel Ian Godfrey in a notice of motion dated Oct. 31. The law society will present its motion this Friday. Police arrested Munir in February of this year after he met with the sister of a client and an under- cover officer who recorded the encounter. He bragged during the meeting that he had already paid a police officer to have the charges withdrawn. "Let's just say I'm a magical lawyer," an agreed statement of facts filed in court quoted him as saying. If he didn't receive the $1,000, "then there can be problems. I will be in trouble," he said. "A cop is a very powerful person," added Munir, who suggested police would re- open the case if they didn't pay the bribe money. In fact, the Crown had indicated to Munir a week earlier that it wasn't going to proceed with the prosecu- tion of his client because the complainant had recanted. Munir didn't pass on this in- formation to the client's fam- ily, although it learned in- dependently of the Crown's decision. The court is to sentence Munir on Nov. 24 following his guilty plea to fraud on Sept. 19. As for the law society proceedings, Munir's lawyer, Andrew Vaughan, says his cli- ent notified the regulator of the charges at the time of the arrest in February. "He informed the law society right from the get- go. He also informed all of his clients about what he was fac- ing," says Vaughan, who adds there has been followup com- munication with the investiga- tions branch of the law society. But how does the law society learn of criminal cases against lawyers if they don't report them- selves? Do other lawyers, such as Crown prosecutors, have a duty to also report these types of cases when they learn of them? According to the Ministry of the Attorney General, there's no formal policy within the provin- cial government to inform the law society once it prosecutes a criminal proceeding against a lawyer. "The ministry's position is that the existing ministry and law society protocols and prac- tices are sufficient," said spokes- man Brendan Crawley. Munir's case shows the law society expects lawyers to report criminal charges themselves. Once it learns of a criminal charge against a lawyer, it does a risk assessment to de- termine if interim measures are necessary, said Susan Tonkin, a spokeswoman for the regulator. "The law society consid- ers the risk to the public, the risk to the licensee, and the risk to the public's confidence in the profession and the ad- ministration of justice," said Tonkin. When asked what process is in place to ensure notice to the law society if a lawyer fails to report any charges, Tonkin pointed to the Rules of Professional Conduct. In addition to the self-reporting requirement, Tonkin said all licensees, including Crown at- torneys, must report allegations of serious misconduct by any lawyer. It's not clear how the law so- ciety enforces this aspect of the requirement and it continued to refer to the rules when asked followup questions about a lawyer's obligation to report on other licensees. In addition to the self-report- ing requirement, "as a matter of practice, there are circumstanc- es where a Crown with carriage of a prosecution has already independently confirmed that the licensee has self-reported or been reported by another party," said Crawley. The president of the Criminal Lawyers' Association believes the existing framework protects the public interest. "I don't think there is any gap. The obligation is on the licensee," says Anthony Moustacalis. "There are serious conse- quences if you do not report. We are a self-governing profession and we have to be responsible." The issue about notice to the law society follows media reports earlier this year on the regulator's policy on reporting lawyers sus- pected of criminal activity to po- lice. It has defended its practices and, in a recent report from its professional regulation commit- tee, it reiterated its policy. The law society will report to police if there are reasonable grounds to suspect a licensee's involvement in criminal activ- ity, according to the policy. It won't report if police are "already aware" of the alleged wrongdo- ing. It won't make any report until it formally launches a dis- ciplinary proceeding and the in- formation shared is subject to the confidentiality provisions of the Law Society Act. LT NEWS 12-month, part-time, executive LL.M. for lawyers and business professionals Advance your career to the next level! Learn important legal and business concepts that can be immediately applied to better serve your clients. Explore the implications of real-life cases in an increasingly complex global business environment. Acquire in-depth knowledge of how the law interacts with both the private and public sectors. For more information please contact Jane Kidner, Assistant Dean Professional Legal Education at j.kidner@utoronto.ca http://www.law.utoronto.ca/programs/GPLLM.html or visit our website: Untitled-2 1 14-07-14 9:29 AM T 'There are serious consequences if you do not report,' says Anthony Moustacalis.

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