Kenneth M. Mcleod

Findings — machine-extracted (anthropic-batch:claude-opus-4-8); verify against the decision

Kenneth McLeod appealed against the General Legal Council's decision striking him off for professional misconduct involving intermeddling with client funds. He did not challenge the finding of misconduct but argued the penalty of striking off was disproportionate. The Court of Appeal found some merit, noting the purchasers remained willing to deal with him, and substituted a two-year suspension (from 26 November 2002) for the striking off. No express finding of dishonesty was made in this appeal judgment. The appellant was ordered to pay costs of $50,000.

Duties found breached:

• No improper use of client money
• No baseless or threatened misconduct report

Aggravating factors:

• Matter was reported to the Fraud Squad
• Continued relationship with the complainant's attorneys despite the complaint to the General Legal Council

Mitigating factors:

• Letter of 16 December 1998 showed the purchasers were still willing to treat with the appellant despite the complaint