By Rachel Morton
New Zealand has nearly 11,000 lawyers – one of the highest per capita ratios in the world.
They tend to guard their reputations carefully, but has Chris Comeskey given all lawyers a bad name?
His hearing before the Laws and Conveyances Disciplinary Tribunal has put the entire legal profession under the spotlight.
“It casts aspersions of a serious kind on decent and respectful members who are complying with their obligations,” says Law Society lawyer John Billington QC.
Mr Comeskey’s lawyer Russel Fairbrother disagrees. He said a recent audit of legal aid cases showed that 60 percent of cases didn’t match the hours that lawyers had claimed to work.
In other words; they were rorting the system.
“This legal services invoice charge is the tip of a very troublesome iceberg, both for our community and for legal aid lawyers in this country,” says Mr Fairbrother.
The Law Society says it understands and supports the tribunal’s decision.
Warren Brookbanks co-wrote a book about the principals of criminal law. He says he believes more lawyers have a high standard of ethics, but over the past few decades the profession has changed from one that’s principally there to serve the community.
“These days the law is seen more as a business, where the bottom line is that the firm should make a profit and operate as a business and with business ethics,” he says.
The Law Society hopes the nine-month suspension given to Mr Comeskey today will reassure the public that the legal profession takes any wrongdoing seriously.
They say lawyers will be held accountable.
3 News
Audio: RadioLIVE's Marcus Lush talks with Legal Services Agency General Manager, Stuart White, about pitfalls in New Zealand's legal aid system.