A hearing panel of the Law Society has ordered that Surrey lawyer John (Jack) Joseph Jacob Hittrich be suspended for professional misconduct. The three-month suspension will commence on July 13, 2020.
Hittrich was found to have committed professional misconduct by attempting to resolve litigation in favour of his clients through improper means. He sent a letter to the Director of Child, Family and Community Services in which he threatened to expose what he alleged to be perjury by representatives of the Director, unless the Director agreed to settle the litigation as his clients proposed. In making this threat, Hittrich attempted to influence the Director to exercise her statutory decision-making authority for an improper purpose.
In ordering the three-month suspension, the panel considered Hittrich’s professional conduct record, which consisted of four conduct reviews and a practice standards referral, as well as the serious nature of the misconduct, which the panel found was planned and committed for tactical advantage.
Written reasons for the decision on facts and determination are available here and written reasons for the hearing on disciplinary action are available here.
-30-
For further information contact:
Vinnie Yuen
Communications Officer
604.697.5836
vyuen@lsbc.org