The Law Society of British Columbia has fined a North Vancouver lawyer $25,000 for professional misconduct, which included backdating corporate transactions to ensure a multi-million-dollar real-estate deal went through.
Ronald Wayne Perrick was handed the fine by a hearing panel of the law society June 12 for what the panel described as “multiple serious instances of professional misconduct.”
Perrick’s actions included improperly using expired power of attorney for clients who had since died and backdating of corporate share transactions. Perrick also withdrew funds from a trust account when he knew there was a dispute about the fees and before presenting a bill, according to the law society.
The allegations against Perrick first arose back in 2006, but Perrick never admitted or acknowledged any misconduct, according to the hearing panel. The victims had to hire a new lawyer and fight their own lengthy battle in court in order to obtain an accounting of the trust funds and the proper legal bill for services rendered from Perrick.
While the law society had urged a fine of $15,000, the hearing panel instead imposed a higher fine of $25,000 saying it was important to send a strong message that his action “was not only irresponsible but also unethical.”
Perrick “engaged in multiple serious instances of professional misconduct in order to fulfill his client’s goal of completing a commercial real-estate transaction and then his own goal of receiving a substantial legal fee for his services,” the hearing panel wrote.
Perrick was also ordered to pay the law society’s costs of $24,000. Perrick must pay both the fine and costs on or before Oct. 31, 2014.
Perrick has been a lawyer since 1971 and has been practising law in North Vancouver for 30 years.
