Law Times

Law times • OctOber 29, 2012 Real estate deal haunts former lawyer 30 years on Paul Temelini no longer practising but still fighting RCMP over fraud charges FOCUS A BY MARG. BRUINEMAN For Law Times Paul Temelini more than 30 years later. In 1967, Temelini was called n old problem result- ing from his work as a real estate lawyer continues to haunt to the bar. He then returned to his hometown of Sudbury, Ont., where he set up his practice and quickly settled in. "I have a natural knack of deals with the exception of the lawyer. "There is no evidence turning sows' ears into silk purses," he says in recounting his early successes. "When I graduated from law school and opened a law prac- tice, I built a 146-unit apartment building and I got married. for the worse. "I practice, got divorced, and bare- ly hung onto my interest." If Temelini' Things, however, took a turn lost my law " ity tale, it's difficult to assess the s story is a moral- moral of the story since it ap- pears far from complete. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Temelini acted as a law- yer in a large number of real estate transactions involving three different clients all using the same agent. The deals were complex and involved several properties and buildings. There were agreements on mortgages, commissions, and loans. Up to that point, things were that Mr. Temelini knew or ought to have known that the properties that were being sold to the [clients] were being sold at inflated values or that [the realtor] was at the start of a con game that would cost the [clients] all their assets and an incredible amount of anguish that would lead them to bankruptcy. tors using the same agent also sought Temelini' services for their real estate transactions. On the subject of those negotiations, the Another group of inves- s legal " Sudbury MP Glenn Thibeault is presenting a petition to the House of Commons on behalf of former lawyer Paul Temelini. judge concluded: "There is no evidence be- fore me to indicate that Paul Temelini knew about [the realtor' cessed the purchases and reported to [the cli- ent]. There is nothing anywhere to indicate s] lies. Temelini's office pro- that Paul Temelini acted in any capacity other than as a solicitor. RCMP and others involved in the charges for malicious prosecution. The original statement of claim dates back to 1985. Temelini fig- ures it' Temelini is suing the " active lawsuit before Cana- da' s probably the oldest tary's boss and the RCMP had him secretly under investigation for at least two years by that point. Temelini contends that the crimi- nal allegations against him, which he later beat, were a conspiracy fuelled by malice. Temelini' s suit bounced around the courts litigation ended in his fa- vour three years later, but Temelini alleges the secre- a reference to a civil suit dating back to 1976 in which a secretary with the RCMP sued Temelini. The s courts. The claim begins with element, allegations he maintains are false. Temelini also learned that a source for the RCMP was a bank employee. He's also s criminal for many years and in 1999 he filed a free- dom of information application requesting documents connected to his criminal case. One document, he says, had him pegged as a racketeer and a figure in Sudbury' suing the bank for giving away confidential information about his practice as well as his business and financial circumstances. Aſter all of these years, Temelini continues PAGE 11 to plead his case. His MP, Glenn Thibeault, is presenting his petition in the House of Commons in hopes of sparking some sort of movement towards a resolution. "They destroyed me, any of my constituents," Thibeault told Law Times for a story on Temelini' on Oct. 1. The allegations in Temelini' haven't been proven in court. As for the length of time the case is taking, the RCMP earlier suggested Law Times contact the courts for an explanation. LT "I do what I can for Paul as I would for s battle that ran s lawsuit " says Temelini. good for Temelini. Another one of his investments was a problematic piece of land in a high-traffic area that no one else wanted to touch. He optioned the property and then bought it for $75,000. He worked through the issues, had it rezoned, at- tracted a grocer, and sold it for $2.7 million. In 1982, a police investigation led to charges of fraud against Temelini and two others. The lawyer faced six charges. While those charges were before the courts, he agreed not to prac- tise law. Temelini says the final result didn't really matter to his practice since, as soon as police laid those charges, his career as a real estate lawyer in Sudbury was over. Among the victims was a couple who had six fam- ily members cosign a loan for them. The agreement also in- cluded a lien on their property and their car. They had five real estate transactions through Temelini's office. that went the charges against Temelini, Judge M.J. Fortier wondered aloud about the couple' vation to throw everything they had into the deal. "The only reasonable con- s moti- 1-888-667-5151 or www.stewart.ca clusion I can come to is that they were caught up in the fever known as speculation," he said in a judgement that was critical of nearly all of the players in the Untitled-3 1 In his judgement dismissing The title insurer that puts you front row, centre Putting the legal community front and centre has made us the #1 choice with Canadian lawyers for over a decade. 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