Complaint process for misconduct

Upon receiving a written complaint about potential misconduct, the Commissioner’s office will:

1. acknowledge in writing the receipt of the complaint
2. assess the complaint, consider the facts, and determine its merit
3. where appropriate, seek to conciliate the dispute between the client and the lawyer
4. if conciliation isn't appropriate or if there is no conciliated outcome, then further investigate the alleged misconduct
5. make a determination as to whether or not there is misconduct; and
6. if there is, then take the appropriate disciplinary action.

The complaint process for misconduct

Download as a PDF here.

At any stage of the process a complaint can be closed for various reasons, including if the Commisioner determines that:

• it is outside of the Commissioner’s jurisdiction
• it is lacking substance
• it has previously been investigated under the Act.