Vancouver – A Law Society hearing panel has ordered Roger Dwight Batchelor to be suspended for 30 days for professional misconduct. He most recently practised in Victoria.
Batchelor admitted that while he was representing clients in a case involving an estate, he relied on two sworn affidavits knowing they were improperly commissioned and filed electronically without compliance with court rules. He also admitted to misrepresenting to the court how one of the affidavits was commissioned.
In its decision, the hearing panel said: “The behaviour of (Batchelor) in wilfully filing improperly sworn affidavits and representing to the court otherwise is one of the most serious transgressions that can be committed by a lawyer. It goes to the heart of the legal process before our courts.”
Batchelor’s suspension is scheduled to begin on April 1, 2014. He is required to pay costs in the amount of $2,000.
The Law Society of British Columbia regulates the more than 11,000 practising lawyers in the province, setting and enforcing standards of professional conduct that ensure the public is well-served by a competent, honourable legal profession.
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For further information or to arrange an interview contact:
Ryan-Sang Lee
Communications Officer
604.443.5708
rlee@lsbc.org