Ellen Leahy [1993] NSWLST 16

The Legal Services Tribunal of New South Wales

CITATION : Ellen Leahy [1993] NSWLST 16 PARTIES : ELLEN LEAHY FILE NUMBER(S) : of 1993 CORAM: Mr C. Robison(Chairman) - Mr A. Edgar - Councillor E. Dutton CATCHWORDS: Approval to employ a person convicted of an indictable offence (s.48K) - Professional Misconduct - mislead Court/Tribunal - Professional Misconduct - make false statement :- not a fit and proper person to be employed or paid in connection with a solicitor's practice LEGISLATION CITED: Legal Profession Act 1987 CASES CITED: Browne v Dunn DATES OF HEARING: 14 October 1993 DATE OF JUDGMENT: 11/25/1993 LEGAL REPRESENTATIVES: Mr I. Wales (instructed by Ms E. Murphy) for the Law Society of New South Wales Ms E. Leahy, the clerk, on her own behalf.

JUDGMENT:

The Council of the Law Society of New South Wales (the Society) applied to the Tribunal for an order under Section 120 (4) of the Legal Profession Act 1987 ("the Act") prohibiting any solicitor from employing or paying Ellen Leahy ("the clerk") in connection with the solicitor's practice. The complaint stated that the Society was of the opinion that the Clerk was not a fit and proper person to be employed or paid in connection with a solicitor's practice.

The council of the Society at its meeting on 29 January 1993 resolved that an application be made to the Tribunal pursuant to Section 120(4) of the Act with respect to the clerk as set out in paragraph 2 of Mr Smith's Declaration.

Particulars of the Application constitute the following:

Particulars

(a) The clerk provided a document known to be forged to her barrister who, apparently not knowing the forged nature of the document, used such document in the defence of a prosecution against the company Macetoil Pty Limited by the Society under Part 9 of the Act.