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 50 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 · current · archived copy · official source ↗
Cayman Islands Legal Services Code 2026 no clear equivalent
AU Solicitors Solicitors' Conduct Rules Rule 32.1 strong 196 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 41 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 11 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
522 decisions · link basis: found breached = a tribunal finding; rule cited = the mapped provision is cited in the decision; text match = high-precision text pattern
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Mimi Mankiu Luk
Agreed Statement of Facts
Agreed Statement of Facts View decision -
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 -
Garry Wayne SCOTT
Guilty of professional misconduct on 2 charges. Guilty of unsatisfactory professional conduct on 2 charges.
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David Steven SORBAN
Guilty of professional misconduct on 1 charge.
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Dean George FARNHAM
Guilty of professional misconduct on 1 charge.
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Mark Ian GREGORY
Guilty of unsatisfactory professional conduct on 1 charge. Guilty of professional misconduct on 10 charges.
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Sean Petrie Allen COUSINS
Guilty of professional misconduct on 1 charge.
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Andrew Herbert Wettern
Breaches, Failures, Others
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Holly Richmond
Breaches, Failures, Solicitors' Accounts Rules, Others
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Nazneen Raza Suleman
Breaches
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Martin John Davy
Breaches, Failures
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S Mireskandari & C S Turbin
Breaches, Client Money, Failures, Solicitors' Accounts Rules
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Jean Francis-Passley
Breaches, Failures, Solicitors' Accounts Rules, Others
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Deborah OHara
Others
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Paul Michael Hewitt & Another
Breaches, Client Money, Delays, Failures, Solicitors' Accounts Rules, Others
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Frank Onokebhagbe Egboh
Breaches, Client Money, Failures, Solicitors' Accounts Rules
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Veronica Margaret Hyland
Breaches, Criminal Convictions, Others
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Benjamin Tubb
Breaches, Failures, Others
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Robert Kenneth COCHRANE
Guilty of professional misconduct on 11 charges. Guilty of unsatisfactory professional conduct on 2 charges.
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Catherine KINCAID
Guilty of professional misconduct on 1 charge.
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James Darren GRIFFITHS
Guilty of professional misconduct on 3 charges.
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Andrew Gordon Walker
Agreed Statement of Facts
Agreed Statement of Facts View decision -
Georgette May Scott
Struck off, Restitution Ordered | Disciplinary Committee decision delivered October 14, 2008. View PDF DECISION OF THE DISCIPLINARY COMMITTEE OF THE GENERAL LEGAL COUNCIL COMPLAINT No. 181/2006 ERROL CUNNINGHAM V GEORGE…
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Douglas John WINNING
Guilty of professional misconduct on 1 charge.
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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.