Prothonotary of the Supreme Court of New South Wales v Livanes

The Prothonotary of the Supreme Court of New South Wales applied to the Court of Appeal for orders striking the respondent, Mr Livanes, from the Roll of local lawyers. The application followed Mr Livanes' conviction for defrauding the Commonwealth and obtaining financial advantage by deception. The central question was whether these criminal convictions constituted professional misconduct and rendered him unfit to remain on the Roll.

The Court of Appeal was required to determine whether Mr Livanes' conduct amounted to professional misconduct, whether he was a person of good fame and character, and consequently, whether he was a fit and proper person to remain on the Roll of local lawyers. These determinations were to be made in light of his criminal convictions.

The Court reasoned that a conviction for serious dishonesty offences, such as defrauding the Commonwealth and obtaining financial advantage by deception, inherently demonstrated a lack of probity and integrity. Such conduct was inconsistent with the standards expected of legal practitioners and therefore constituted professional misconduct. The Court applied the principle that a legal practitioner's fitness to practise is assessed by considering their character, reputation, and honesty, and that criminal convictions for dishonesty are highly relevant to this assessment. Given the nature of the convictions, the Court concluded that Mr Livanes was not of good fame and character and was not a fit and proper person to remain on the Roll.

Accordingly, the Court declared that Mr Livanes was guilty of professional misconduct, was not a person of good fame and character, and was not a fit and proper person to remain on the Roll of local lawyers. The Court ordered that Mr Livanes' name be removed from the Roll of local lawyers of the Supreme Court of New South Wales.