Faiyaz Ahmad Dean

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

Faiyaz A. Dean, a BC lawyer practising through Dean Law Corporation, admitted under Rule 4-29 to professional misconduct including using his trust account without providing legal services or making reasonable inquiries, failing to comply with client identification/verification requirements, and engaging in activities he ought to have known assisted a fraudulent market-manipulation (pump-and-dump) scheme involving shares of related companies. The conduct also gave rise to an SEC default judgment, BC Securities Commission prohibitions, and a US indictment. The tribunal found professional misconduct but made no express finding of dishonesty (the allegation was framed as conduct he 'ought to have known' assisted fraud). He undertook an eight-year ban on practising law (effectively 12 years combined with his non-practising status since 2020), with any reinstatement subject to a mandatory credentials hearing. No fine or costs were stated.

Duties found breached:

• Proper basis for allegations

Aggravating factors:

• Conduct facilitated a fraudulent scheme to manipulate the market and effect illegal sale of stock
• SEC default judgment with permanent market prohibition and civil penalty
• BC Securities Commission permanent market prohibitions
• US indictment for conspiracy to commit securities fraud, wire fraud and money laundering
• Multiple clients and transactions over an extended period
• Transactions involved bank-secrecy jurisdictions and offshore entities

Mitigating factors:

• Admission of professional misconduct under Rule 4-29
• Agreed Statement of Facts and cooperation
• Voluntary undertaking not to practise since January 1, 2020
• Broad geographic scope of undertaking offering additional public protection

⚠ figures not found verbatim in the source were dropped: ["review_dishonesty_finding_cue_present"]