The duty in context
No baseless or threatened misconduct report profession
The lawyer must not make or threaten a professional-misconduct allegation or report without a genuine, reasonably held and bona fide belief that it applies.
How the codes express this duty
E&W Solicitors SRA Principles & Code no clear equivalent
E&W Barristers BSB Handbook rC67 strong 28 cases
rC67 You must never make, or threaten to make, a report under Rule rC66 without a genuine and reasonably held belief that Rule rC66 applies.
BSB Handbook Part 2: Code of Conduct · 5.0 · archived copy · official source ↗
Cayman Islands Legal Services Code 2026 no clear equivalent
AU Solicitors Solicitors' Conduct Rules Rule 32.1 strong 198 cases
A solicitor must not make an allegation against another Australian legal practitioner of unsatisfactory professional conduct or professional misconduct unless the allegation is made bona fide and the solicitor believes on reasonable grounds that available material by which the allegation could be supported provides a proper basis for it.
Australian Solicitors' Conduct Rules · 2015 (June 2026 compilation) · archived copy · official source ↗
AU Barristers Uniform Barristers Rules no clear equivalent
IE Solicitors Law Society Guide no clear equivalent
IE Barristers Bar Code of Conduct no clear equivalent
JM Attorneys Canons of Professional Ethics no clear equivalent
JE Lawyers Law Society of Jersey Code no clear equivalent
ON Lawyers LSO Rules of Prof. Conduct r 3.2-5(b); r 7.1-3 commentary [1] partial
3.2-5 A lawyer shall not, in an attempt to gain a benefit for a client, threaten, or advise a client to threaten, without reasonable and lawful justification ... (b) to make a complaint to a regulatory authority. [7.1-3 commentary [1]: In all cases, the report must be made without malice or ulterior motive. 3.2-5 commentary [1]: It is an abuse of the process of a court or, ordinarily, a regulatory authority to threaten to make or advance a charge or complaint in order to secure the satisfaction of a private grievance.]
Law Society of Ontario — Rules of Professional Conduct · current · archived copy · official source ↗
BC Lawyers BC Code r 7.1-3, commentary [2] partial 37 cases
Nothing in this paragraph is meant to interfere with the lawyer-client relationship. In all cases, the report must be made without malice or ulterior motive.
Code of Professional Conduct for British Columbia (BC Code) · 2017 · archived copy · official source ↗
NZ Lawyers Conduct & Client Care Rules r 2.10 strong
A lawyer must not use, or threaten to use, the complaints or disciplinary process for an improper purpose.
Lawyers and Conveyancers Act (Lawyers: Conduct and Client Care) Rules 2008 · SR 2008/214 · archived copy · official source ↗
SCO Solicitors LSS Standards of Conduct no clear equivalent
SG Lawyers Professional Conduct Rules 2015 r 29 (Allegations against another legal practitioner) partial 6 cases
29 Allegations against another legal practitioner
Legal Profession (Professional Conduct) Rules 2015 · 2015 · archived copy · official source ↗
HK Solicitors Solicitors' Guide no clear equivalent
HK Barristers Bar Code of Conduct para 10.50 partial
A practising barrister shall not make any allegation of misconduct or dishonesty against another barrister unless such allegation is supported by reasonably credible evidence.
Code of Conduct of the Bar of the Hong Kong SAR · 2018 · archived copy · official source ↗
Cases dealing with this duty
505 decisions · link basis: found breached = a tribunal finding; rule cited = the mapped provision is cited in the decision; text match = high-precision text pattern
-
Doherty, Peter John
1. Breach Section 255 of the Legal Profession Act 2004 - holding, disbursing and accounting for trust money 2. Misappropriation of trust monies 3. Knowingly mislead the client 4. Unreasonable delay 5. Failure to account…
Additional Orders made by the Tribunal (see Tribunal decision) Conditions on Practising Certificate Costs Cancellation of practising certificate from 25 September 2009 to 25 September 2010 $0.00 Appeal Status: Dismissed Appeal Decision View decision -
Ian George Marsh RICHARDSON
Guilty of professional misconduct on 2 charges. Guilty of unsatisfactory professional conduct on 1 charge.
-
Colin CHADWICK
Guilty of professional misconduct on 2 charges.
-
Patrick Brendan CAIN
Guilty of professional misconduct on 2 charges.
-
Georgette May Scott
Appeal dismissed, Disciplinary Committee Decision affirmed | Court of Appeal decision delivered July 30, 2009. View PDF JAMAICA IN THE COURT OF APPEAL SUPREME COURT CIVIL APPEAL NO. 118/2008 BEFORE THE HON. MR. JUSTICE …
-
MARTIN LEE SEGLER
Unsatisfactory Conduct by Unprofessional Conduct
-
Slowgrove, Bradley
1. He settled and advised the sending of a letter by his instructing solicitor to a Magistrate to discourage the Magistrate from sitting and the letter was intended to inappropriately influence, or attempt to influence,…
-
Robin Carl TAMPOE
Guilty of professional misconduct on 2 charges.
-
Brynly Whyford THOMAS
Guilty of professional misconduct on 2 charges. Guilty of unsatisfactory professional conduct on 4 charges.
-
Jeffrey Leslie GARRETT
Guilty of professional misconduct on 1 charge.
-
Miller, James Mathew
1, Failure to compoly with Notices issued under Section 660 of the Legal Profession Act 2004 2. Failure to provide to the Bar Council written Notice in respect of Show Cause events under Section 67(2)(a) of the Legal Pr…
Cancellation of Practising Certificate $0.00 About About the OLSC The Commissioner History Mission statement Structure Contact Contact the OLSC Give us your feedback: online surveys Access to information (GIPAA) Community information Information for lawyers Fact sheets FAQs Other regulatory and complaint-handling organisations Contact LawAccess NSW for legal information " You and Your Lawyer", Hot Topics 78 Legal Information Access Centre (LIAC), State Library of NSW , provides access to information about the law in NSW regarding your lawyer Privacy Copyright and Disclaimer Website accessibility View decision -
Mimi Mankiu Luk
Agreed Statement of Facts
-
David Steven SORBAN
Guilty of professional misconduct on 1 charge.
-
Dean George FARNHAM
Guilty of professional misconduct on 1 charge.
-
Mark Ian GREGORY
Guilty of unsatisfactory professional conduct on 1 charge. Guilty of professional misconduct on 10 charges.
-
Sean Petrie Allen COUSINS
Guilty of professional misconduct on 1 charge.
-
Nazneen Raza Suleman
Breaches
-
S Aziz
Breaches, Failures, Others
-
J J Patel
Breaches, Failures, Others, Solicitors' Accounts Rules
-
Jean Francis-Passley
Breaches, Failures, Solicitors' Accounts Rules, Others
-
S Mireskandari & C S Turbin
Breaches, Client Money, Failures, Solicitors' Accounts Rules
-
Andrew Herbert Wettern
Breaches, Failures, Others
-
Alan Matthew Avetoom & Another
Breaches, Client Money, Delays, Failures, Solicitors' Accounts Rules, Others
-
Mahmood Ali & Montague Mason Solicitors Ltd
Breaches, Client Money, Failures, Solicitors' Accounts Rules, Others
-
James Darren GRIFFITHS
Guilty of professional misconduct on 3 charges.
Duty classification does not yet cover every jurisdiction (Ontario, New Zealand and Singapore decisions are indexed but not yet duty-classified), so counts here understate those corpora.