Hamilton lawyer suspended

A Hamilton lawyer with 34 years’ experience has been suspended for a month after transferring ownership of a property that was held in a family trust.

The New Zealand Lawyers and Conveyancers Disciplinary Tribunal yesterday announced the suspension of Helen Eileen Monckton which began yesterday.

At a hearing last month, Monckton pleaded guilty to a charge of negligence in her professional capacity of such a degree as to reflect on her fitness to practise or as to bring her profession into disrepute.

The tribunal decision said Ms Monckton acted or purported to act for multiple parties to a property transaction in breach of the Lawyers Conduct and Client Care Rules provisions for conflict of interest.

Monckton’s actions left the family in shock after discovering a property, which they believed was a family trust property, transferred into their sister’s sole name.

Monckton was instructed to act for a new client who wanted to buy a property in Dinsdale.

The client then told Monckton that she and her father – who had dementia – owned a second property and she wanted to buy it outright, although she thought it had been vested in a family trust.

The client was planning to buy the Dinsdale property with 100 per cent finance, but at the eleventh hour the bank insisted on collateral security for their mortgage.

Monckton suggested to her client that the bank mortgage over the second property be discharged and that property be transferred into her sole name to use as security.

The client’s father’s affairs were managed by her other two sisters under a power of attorney. It was then arranged for one of the attorneys to sign on their father’s behalf that he resign as trustee and transfer the property.

The tribunal found Monckton’s level of negligence was so serious that ‘‘any penalty short of suspension would not properly fall within the principles of penalty imposition’’.

As well as suspension, Monckton was ordered to write an apology to the complainant and undertaking training, as well as being required to pay up to $10,000 to rectify her errors.

She was also ordered to pay costs to the law society of $7765 and further costs to the Waikato Bay of Plenty Standards Committee.