Title February 2019

Jury acquits Brother David Curtin on historical sex charges

Goulburn Post – A solicitor has strongly criticised a police investigation after a retired Christian Brother was acquitted of historical sexual/indecent assault this week. 

Brother David Michael Curtin, 67, of Mulgoa, was found not guilty by a jury in Downing Centre District Court.

Read more…

 

AB v Law Society of NSW [2018] NSWSC1975 Davies J

In this matter Greg Walsh acted for AB in a very important case against the Law Society of NSW.

AB at the time of instructing Mr Walsh was a Solicitor with Firm 1. Her supervising partner was CD. That supervising partner on 3 March 2016 requested that she pop in and see her and when AB did so a piece of paper was handed to AB consisting firstly of CD’s signature and that of EF, CD’s former partner and the father of a child XY. AB witnessed CD’s signature as a person over the age of 18 years and not related to CD. She neither witnessed it as a Solicitor or in her capacity as a Solicitor. CD then asked her can you witness EF’s signature as well. She did so. AB said to CD “Has EF been in to sign this?” CD said “Yes I met him this morning”. AB had no reason not to believe what her supervising partner told her and signed the documents.

The next day AB overheard a phone call made by CD with a person likely to have been EF. As a result of the matters that she heard in the call CD said to AB that he had received a call from the Passport Office about the Passport Application. AB became suspicious at that point that EF may not have signed the application because CD had said to EF on the phone that she was taking XY to New York.

Davies J set out in his judgement at paras [9-14] further evidence in respect of the circumstances of the execution of the Passport Application and the results of investigation conducted as to what had occurred in such circumstances.

On 1 September 2016 AB contacted the Law Society and was referred to the Senior Solicitors Scheme and thus represented by Greg Walsh. Mr Walsh obtained instructions from AB and on 17 November 2016 sent a letter to the Law Society making full disclosure of the matters on behalf of AB.

Davies J thereafter sets out in some detail the extensive exchange of correspondence between Greg Walsh and the Law Society. Greg Walsh asserted that the Law Society had not afforded procedural fairness to his client and had not disclosed documentation consisting of two statutory declarations of CD to the Law Society. Mr Walsh on behalf of AB asserted that the full statutory declaration provided to the Law Society by CD be provided to him on behalf of AB. Justice Davies refers to Mr Walsh’s assertions in his judgement at paras [21-23]. On 6 July 2018 Ms Foord on behalf of the Law Society replied to Mr Walsh stating “You have been provided with everything that is relevant to the Society ‘s investigation of the complaint about AB. Those parts of CD ‘s statutory declaration that do not relate to your client or to the complaint about her will not be provided to you”.

At para [24] Justice Davies made this finding “In fact, the Law Society’s statement in that letter was untrue. Not only did the Law Society have the statutory declaration of CD from which it had quoted, but it had another statutory declaration, made at an earlier time, with answers to questions which had been asked of CD by the Law Society. That only became clear when Mr Walsh saw the report from the Bar Association mentioned earlier. That statutory declaration was not made available until a subpoena and a notice to produce was issued to the Law Society shortly before the present hearing. The other statutory declaration has never been made available to the plaintiff”.

Justice Davies set out in his judgement at [25-26] the result of the investigation made by The NSW Bar Association to grant AB a Practising Certificate as a Barrister. Mr Walsh on her behalf had made full disclosure about the complaint to the Law Society. The Bar Association had been abled by way of notice issued to the Law Society to obtain the relevant statutory declaration.

At [27] His Honour notes that on 12 September 2017 Mr Walsh wrote to the Law Society indicating that he had now learnt that there were in fact two Statutory Declarations. The First Statutory Declaration of CD contained significant admissions which are directly relevant to the allegations of Professional Misconduct against AB. At [28] the Law Society did not reply. Greg Walsh wrote again on 16 October 2017. In that letter he asserted “…[l]t is submitted that the decision to conceal from AB and myself as her solicitor the contents of the First Statutory Declaration of CD provided to the Law Society on 21 April 2017 is utterly contrary to the obligations of procedural fairness/natural justice. …”.

Ms Foord on behalf of the Law Society responded in a letter of 24 October 2017 again asserting that everything relevant had been provided to Mr Walsh on behalf of AB.

At [30] Justice Davies made this finding “It was again not true that all relevant material had been provided to AB. The Law Society had still not made available the statutory declaration from CD in its possession. The letter of 20 June 2017 which first disclosed the existence of a statutory declaration by CD did not mention the date of that statutory declaration. It could not, therefore, be inferred from the references in the letter of 24 October 2017 that what was being spoken of was a second statutory declaration by CD”.

On 1 February 2018 the Law Society resolved to refer that AB to the Administrative Tribunal

Occupational Division on the basis that she had falsely witnessed the signature of EF on a

Passport Application of about 3 March 2016. It provided reasons for its decision which were then set out by His Honour at [40].

Throughout the ordeal suffered by AB, Mr Walsh had obtained reports from her treating psychiatrist Dr David Sturrock. These set out the tragic circumstances in which she suffered from a major depressive illness: shock, depressed mood, nightmares, insomnia, anxiety, panic attacks, tearfulness, nausea, dry mouth and poor concentration and suicidal ideation. The response by the Law Society to such overwhelming evidence was simply to assert that it in no way was responsible having regard to its conduct in delaying the investigation and concealing evidence that was clearly relevant to the allegations made against AB. Tragically, AB attempted to take her own life on three separate occasions.

Justice Davies ultimately held for the reasons set out in his judgement that the Law Society had failed to accord procedural fairness to her and further had failed to provide adequate reasons in both the decisions of 14 December 2017 and I February 2018 meaning the decisions could not stand. His Honour further found that the reasons for the decision of I February 2018 disclosed jurisdictional error.

The Law Society then despite His Honour reserving his decision resolved to commence proceedings in the tribunal and did so on 1 August 2018. His Honour made an order in the nature of certiorari quashing the decisions of the Law Society made on 14 December 2017 and 1 February 2018.

This judgement of Justice Davies is a fundamental one in respect of the proper manner in which the Law Society of NSW ought to have investigated the allegations of Professional Misconduct against AB. She, somewhat remarkably, is still alive to continue assisting the community as a member of the NSW Bar Association.