Legal Practitioners Conduct Board v Fardone

The Legal Practitioners Conduct Board applied to the Supreme Court of South Australia for an order striking the defendant, Mr Fardone, from the roll of legal practitioners. The application was not opposed. Mr Fardone had previously been found by the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal to have engaged in unprofessional conduct. This conduct related to his actions as executor and solicitor in an estate matter, and also encompassed earlier findings of unprofessional conduct.

The court was required to determine whether Mr Fardone should be struck off the roll of legal practitioners, given the findings of unprofessional conduct made against him by the Tribunal. The alleged unprofessional conduct involved a sustained course of action over several years, including breaches of fiduciary duties as executor and solicitor, appropriation of trust money for the benefit of a company in which he was a director and shareholder, failure to disclose his interests, gross negligence, and failure to comply with statutory obligations concerning trust moneys and record-keeping.

The court accepted the Board's submission that the findings of unprofessional conduct demonstrated a serious departure from the standards expected of a legal practitioner. The conduct involved a significant misappropriation of trust funds and a pattern of dishonesty and disregard for his professional obligations. The court noted that the practitioner had not opposed the application for striking off, which indicated an acceptance of the gravity of the findings. The legal principle applied was that where a legal practitioner's conduct demonstrates a fundamental lack of integrity or a serious breach of professional duties, striking off is an appropriate disciplinary measure to protect the public and maintain confidence in the legal profession.

The court ordered that Mr Fardone be struck off the roll of legal practitioners.