BC lawyer Russell McDonough agrees to seven-year practice ban

As part of a consent agreement with the Law Society, former BC lawyer Russell McDonough admitted to three findings of professional misconduct and agreed not to practise law for a period of seven years.

McDonough admitted he misappropriated trust funds, breached undertakings given on real estate matters, and made false and misleading representations to a client and staff.

In accepting the consent agreement proposal, the Law Society took into consideration the fact that McDonough had a disability at the time he committed the misconduct and that it significantly impacted his behaviour. The Law Society also considered his previous professional conduct record, which included a conduct review for breaching  an undertaking in a real estate file, and a conduct review related to the improper withdrawal of residual trust balances.

Additional terms of the agreement include that McDonough must not submit an application for membership in any other law society in Canada for 6.5 years; must advise the Law Society before applying for membership in any other law society; and must obtain written consent from the Law Society before working for any firm in BC. The consent agreement will now form part of his professional conduct record.

A summary of the consent agreement can be found here.