Law Times - Newsmakers

6 December 2015 top newsmakers ONE OF THE BIGGEST STORIES of 2015 involved a lawyer who went so far as to create fake orders on behalf of his client. It's a case that saw an even more unusual twist in September when police charged the client with a count of extortion. The lawyer, Brian Nicholson, of Mississauga, Ont., still faces a hearing on Jan. 4 on charges of fraud, obstruct justice, and uttering false documents after he lost his licence to practise law during proceedings in April at the Law Society Tribunal. The tribunal found Nicholson had faked elaborate endorsements, e-mails, and notices, sometimes with addenda, signed under the names of actual judges in Ontario. From 2012-13, Rob Danninger, owner of Daro Flooring Constructions Inc., was Nicholson's client. The two were also one-time friends, according to an agreed statement of facts. After taking on a file for Daro Flooring, which was alleging a breach of an agreement against Lafarge Canada, Nicholson took no steps to pursue the action and instead wrote several orders impersonating judges at different levels of court in Ontario. In one of those elaborate fabrications, Nicholson impersonated a judge and wrote an order for the payment of a $3-million fine in favour of Danninger for breaches of an injunction the court had never actually ordered. He also went as far as to write an order for the closure of the defendant's manufacturing plant in March 2013 before coming up with a fake notice of appeal of that same decision. Nicholson admitted to the fabrication in the agreed statement of facts but said he was going through a personal crisis at the time following a divorce from his previous wife and his father's death. He said he was acting out of fear of disappointing his client, whom Nicholson described as being "overbearing and threatening at times." Nicholson filed a report from psychotherapist Nata- sha Sharma to the tribunal in his defence that said the lawyer has, among other difficulties, self-esteem issues, poor judgment, and a "self-centred personality." Sharma noted that in one of his four sessions with her, Nich- olson said he had difficulty separating himself from clients and that in order to be a good lawyer, he felt he had to take on their problems as his own. Following an admission to his client and former friend that he had indeed fabricated the document trail, Nicholson made a $25,000 payment to Danninger, an amount described as restitution to the tribunal. In September, however, Nichol- son's new wife, Vanessa Gartner, alleged he gave the money to Danninger because of threats to the lawyer's livelihood unless he made the payment. She said they complied out of fear for Nicholson's career. While the extortion charge hasn't been proven in court, York Regional Police confirmed in September that Danninger, 47, faced one count of extortion and was to make a first appearance in Newmarket, Ont., on Oct. 1. Const. Andy Pattenden said at the time Danninger was due to appear that day in the Ontario Court of Justice on the allegation that he had demanded a $25,000 sum. For his part, Danninger called the allegations "ridiculous." As for Nicholson's January appearance, Gartner said she was confident the Crown would drop at least a portion of the charges against him and that he otherwise stands by his admission of guilt in terms of falsifying documents. Lawyer disbarred for writing fake documents BY NEIL ETIENNE Brian Nicholson What do your clients need? The means to move on. Guaranteed ™ . Baxter Structures customizes personal injury settlements into tax-free annuities that can help your clients be secure for life. Need more information? Contact us at 1 800 387 1686 or baxterstructures.com Kyla A. Baxter, CSSC PRESIDENT, BAXTER STRUCTURES ntitled-1 1 13-09-16 2:53 PM An example of one of the rulings written by lawyer Brian Nicholson under the name of Justice George Strathy just before his appointment to the Ontario Court of Appeal in 2013.

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