Following a facts and determination hearing decision in which the Law Society Tribunal found former lawyer Rosario Cateno Di Bella had committed professional misconduct, and following the issuance of another citation, Di Bella has agreed to a discipline sanction that bars him from practising law and from applying for re-admission to the Law Society for a period of five years as of January 27, 2022.
The discipline penalty is in regard to two matters. With respect to the first matter, Di Bella admitted that he failed to provide the quality of service required of a competent lawyer in the course of representing his clients. He admitted he failed to keep his clients or beneficiaries of his clients’ estate reasonably informed about the status of their files and, over the course of several months to a year, failed to provide substantive responses to communications from his clients, beneficiaries or other lawyers. He also did not take the necessary steps in their files in a timely manner, including forwarding court-ordered documents, settling a court order, applying for probate of the estate and preparing and filing tax returns.
With regard to the second matter, the tribunal hearing panel determined that Di Bella committed professional misconduct when he did not respond to the Law Society substantively in the course its investigation of a complaint file.
The Law Society accepted Di Bella’s proposal that the discipline penalty for professional misconduct in respect of the two discipline matters is that he may not practise law for five years. The outcome is now recorded on his professional conduct record. Should Di Bella wish to apply for reinstatement to the Law Society when his undertaking expires on January 27, 2027, he will have to satisfy the Law Society’s Credentials Committee that he is of sufficiently good character and repute to practise law in BC.
For details, read the summary of facts and admission here.
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