David Bray

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

Justice Davis (QCAT) found solicitor David Lindsay Bray, principal of Bray Lawyers Pty Ltd (Your Claim Lawyers), breached s 66 PIPA and rule 36.1.4 ASCR by advertising personal injury services (including 'no win no fee' messaging) on a billboard at a building found to be a hospital, on a website, and on social media over roughly five years. Rejecting the parties' joint submission of unsatisfactory professional conduct and a $2,000 fine as inadequate, the Tribunal found charges 1 and 2 to be professional misconduct and charge 3 unsatisfactory professional conduct. Bray was publicly reprimanded on each charge, fined $15,000, $10,000 and $5,000 respectively (totalling $30,000, payable by 30 June 2026), and ordered to pay the Commissioner's costs on the standard basis. No dishonesty was alleged or found.

Duties found breached:

• Truthful, non-misleading advertising

Aggravating factors:

• Reckless (at best) breach of statutory advertising restrictions over a period of almost 5 years
• Practitioner practised exclusively in personal injuries litigation and must have known PIPA restricted advertising
• Conduct gave the practice an unfair advantage over compliant practitioners and frustrated the purposes of the PIPA
• Inference drawn that the advertising produced benefit to the practice (spent $40,000-$50,000 over 5 years)
• Need for general deterrence as this conduct is prevalent in the personal injuries practice

Mitigating factors:

• Admitted to practice since 1991 with an unblemished/no prior adverse disciplinary record
• Cooperated generally with the Commissioner's investigation and proceedings
• Made early admissions and joined in producing an agreed statement of facts and joint submissions
• Demonstrated substantial insight and implemented changes to advertising practices
• Conduct ceased after detection