Lawyer could pay largest fine in BC history after narrowly avoiding disbarment
A lawyer in BC who’s narrowly avoided disbarment after misappropriating client funds could be set to pay the biggest penalty fine in the history of The Law Society of BC (LSBC).
LSBC, the body that regulates lawyers in the province, shared the result of a review of a prior ruling by the Law Society Tribunal.
The issue was whether the hearing panel made an error in ordering a 12-month suspension for a lawyer instead of disbarring her outright.
In 2020, Richmond lawyer Hong Guo was found to have failed to supervise her employees properly and comply with trust accounting rules.
By leaving a series of blank, signed trust cheques with her bookkeeper, Guo’s employee was able to steal $7.5 million of client trust funds. Guo “borrowed” trust funds from her clients to cover her losses, which completely disregards the strict rules around trusts.
Guo misappropriated trust funds and moved money around to try and replace funds missing from other clients’ trust accounts that were needed for pending real estate transactions to be completed.
A one-year suspension was issued at the time, even though the LSBC sought disbarment.
Now, a review has upheld the suspension but also found that it should have required Guo to enter into and comply with a practice supervision agreement before returning to practice.
Guo is facing a penalty fine of $50,000 – the maximum allowed. “Such a fine would be by far the largest financial penalty ever imposed upon a lawyer in a Law Society discipline case,” reads the Tribunal Review Decision.
She has also been ordered to pay LSBC’s costs throughout the proceedings – an additional $47,329.44.
Guo’s one-year suspension is set to start on March 8, 2023. Before she returns to practice law, she must enter and comply with a practice supervision agreement acceptable to the Practice Standards Committee, meaning that law society lawyers will oversee Guo’s practice.