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AFR
A lawyer was ordered to drop his $ 100 bills for customers for whom he was charging a fake tax.
A lawyers standardization committee found that a lawyer who charged his clients non-existent "land transfer taxes" as disbursements had engaged in unsatisfactory conduct.
The Law Society reported that an unidentified lawyer had charged his clients a $ 100 payout for a "Land Transfer Tax", a "Land Transfer Tax Report" or a "Land Transfer Tax Summary Report". LINZ "for almost two years, during which some 240 invoices had been issued.
The standard jurists' committees are composed of experienced lawyers and lay members in good standing of the community who examine complaints within the industry.
The committee ordered the lawyer to reduce his fees by $ 100 for clients for whom he had charged the fake tax.
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The lawyer agreed that the "taxes" were not paid to any third party and he was wrong to record them on his bills.
He said the charges were aimed at recovering the extra time needed to comply with the new rules set out in anti-money laundering legislation.
The panel concluded that the lawyer had violated the Law on Lawyers and Carriers by misleading and deceiving his clients.
The panel also found that the lawyer acted improperly by not disclosing that he would charge his clients additional fees to cover their overhead costs, and that he would charge them separately for the recovery of costs. such as forms, postage and communication.
He also failed to provide adequate GST invoices to his clients.
In addition to the order to reduce his fees, the committee also ordered him to pay $ 500 in costs.
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