Michael Alexander Brown

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

Attorney Michael Brown was retained in 2014 to pursue a personal injury claim for Vivian Robinson arising from a 2014 motor vehicle accident. Despite holding three medical reports and sufficient information, the Attorney never filed suit, never advised the client of the limitation period, and the claim became statute barred in 2020, causing the client to lose his right to compensation. The Attorney's defences (inadequate medical reports and inability to locate the client to sign the Claim Form) were rejected, as he could have certified the Claim Form under Rule 3.12(4) CPR and could have contacted the client's family. The Committee found the conduct constituted inexcusable and deplorable negligence and found breaches of Canons IV(s), IV(r) and I(b). No express finding of dishonesty was made. Sanction was deferred pending submissions from the parties.

Duties found breached:

• No conflict between current clients
• Overriding duty to the court
• Uphold public trust in the profession

Aggravating factors:

• Held the matter for approximately seven years (2014-2021) without filing suit
• Allowed the personal injury claim to become statute barred, causing client to lose right to compensation
• Never advised client of the limitation period or consequences of not filing in time
• Failed to advise client of the insurer's 50/50 settlement offer
• Failed to keep client and family updated despite repeated requests by phone, email, WhatsApp
• Had sufficient information (three medical reports) and contact details to file suit before limitation expired