Duty Of Professionals To Respond Promptly And Cooperatively With Regulators

• Published date: 02 June 2021
• Subject Matter: Litigation, Mediation & Arbitration, Law Department Performance, Trials & Appeals & Compensation, Performance, Management
• Law Firm: Gardiner Roberts LLP
• Author: Mr James R.G. Cook

The Ontario Court of Appeal has confirmed that professionals have a duty to cooperate promptly and fully with their regulator during the course of an investigation.

In 2016, the Law Society of Ontario commenced an investigation into a lawyer's firm, focussing on the firm's structure and referral fee practices. For several months, the Law Society asked the lawyer to produce various documents and information required for the ongoing investigation. While there was a great deal of communication between the lawyer's counsel and the Law Society, the requested documents and information were not fully produced until approximately eight and a half months after the initial request was made.

As a result, the Law Society brought an application before the Law Society Tribunal Hearing Division, alleging that the lawyer engaged in professional misconduct by failing to comply with Rule 7.1-1 of the Rules of Professional Conduct, which provides: "A lawyer shall reply promptly and completely to any communication from the Law Society in which a response is requested." The Hearing Division concluded that the lawyer had breached the rule, and reprimanded him, in addition to ordering that he pay $25,000 in costs to the Law Society: Law Society of Upper Canada v. Diamond, 2017 ONLSTH 191 (CanLII).

...