Mental Issues Did Not Cause Thefts

The Law Society of Ontario Tribunal Hearing Division has revoked an attorney’s license

In a decision dated October 16, 2018, we found that Mr. Reble misappropriated $110,000 of settlement funds that were to be held in trust for two clients and borrowed $300,000 from a third client to prosecute the client’s litigation, which he was unable to repay. We found he failed to act with integrity when he made excuses to the first two clients for delay in paying out the settlement funds long after he had spent the money, and in misleading the third client about the status of the litigation by creating false documents evidencing a settlement for an action which he never commenced.

Mr. Reble’s licence is revoked effective immediately. The facts do not support the conclusion that there are exceptional circumstances sufficient to depart from the presumptive penalty of revocation in cases where the lawyer has engaged in fraudulent or dishonest conduct.

His mitigation

 Mr. Reble gave evidence about those circumstances. He testified that he believed he had mental health issues after the death of his son in 2011. He told us about his contributions to the profession and the impact revocation could have on a project on which he was working. Mr. Reble’s firm closed in 2000 after the amalgamation of the City of Toronto, which terminated the existence of the firm’s big client, the City of Etobicoke. He practised primarily from his home after that time. He acted for the Town of Pickering until 2006 and for various small municipalities. He acted for individuals as well, typically with municipal zoning issues. He described himself as a good lawyer but not a great businessman. He said he never had a trust account.

In September 2007, his grown son had a cardiac arrest that forced him to return to living with his parents. In February 2008, his son either collapsed or was hit by a car in a snowstorm and was taken to hospital. At some point, his son was transferred to a rehabilitation hospital, Bridgepoint, and stayed there until his death in March 2011. We accept that these events were traumatic for Mr. Reble and his family.

 Mr. Reble’s practice declined after his son’s collapse. He said he visited his son every day in hospital. His son was fine mentally but could not walk. He underwent four surgeries. Mr. Reble said he tried to practise but he found it very difficult. His billings went way down. It was during 2010, while his son was in hospital, that he accepted retainers for the first two clients and the third as well. He said that he probably should not have, but needed the money to pay bills and income tax. He testified that his practice collapsed after his son’s death. In 2014, his marriage also dissolved.

Mr. Reble testified that he went to a psychiatrist when his son got sick but did not find it helpful. He went to another psychiatrist after his son died who was excellent. He said he realized that he was not well and that his wife and other sons were suffering as well. Mr. Reble said he could not afford to have the psychiatrist prepare a medical report. This was evidence that Mr. Reble had repeatedly promised to call, as set out in our decision on his request for an adjournment dated January 16, 2019.[2]

Mr. Reble did not testify that he had requested a medical report or tell us how much the report would cost. He said if he had to do it over again, he would find the money for a psychiatric report and believes it would have shown that he had a mental condition that caused him to “steal and lie.”

 Mr. Reble also testified about the volunteer work he did with Ontario Lawyers Assistance Plan in the late 1980s and 1990s. Mr. Reble is a recovered alcoholic who quit drinking in 1982 and has not had a drink since that time. Because of his experience, he was well-positioned to provide peer assistance to lawyers who were seeking help for addictions.

Mr. Reble testified that since 2002 he has been working with a group from Waterloo on the development of a software program designed to simplify access to zoning and other planning-related information. He fears that if he cannot surrender his licence, the stigma of revocation could impact the project’s success. This project is a potential source of income for him as he has no pension and no savings. It is only if this project is successful that he will be in a position to repay the Compensation Fund.

Mr. Reble did not present any character evidence that would assist us with his past or present character or provide insight into his dishonesty.

The division declined to permit resignation

 There is simply no psychiatric evidence at all, much less compelling psychiatric evidence, that credibly indicates that the misconduct was out of character and unlikely to recur, or explains why it occurred. Mr. Reble’s statement that psychiatric evidence would have shown that his mental condition caused him to steal and lie is not founded in any evidence presented to this panel.

(Mike Frisch)