Disbarred B.C. lawyer took client's $18,200 settlement before ceasing all communication: law society

Scales of justice. (Shutterstock)

A former B.C. lawyer who was disbarred for misappropriating client funds was found to have taken an additional $18,200 from an additional client who was paid that money as a settlement for being injured in a car crash.

A recent decision from the disciplinary tribunal of the Law Society of B.C. lays out the details of two additional counts of misconduct committed by Rene Joan Gantzert – who has not communicated with the regulatory body since he resigned as a member in 2020.

In 2016, according to the decision, Gantzert was retained to represent a client in a personal injury case. The agreement entitled Gantzert to a contingency fee equivalent to between 20 and 30 per cent of any settlement.

During a phone call in June of 2017, Gantzert told her a settlement would be reached that day – which it was.

But the client never heard from her lawyer again.

ICBC wrote a cheque for $18,200 to the lawyer, sending it along with a release the client was supposed to sign. The money was deposited into Gantzert’s trust account but the release was never signed or returned.

“None of the settlement funds were given to (the client), and (Gantzert) did not account to (the client) at any time of the status or use of the settlement funds,” the decision says.

Subsequent phone calls the client made to Gantzert went unreturned, and she contacted the law society in 2023 – which is when she learned about the payment for the first time.

By then, Gantzert had “depleted” his trust account completely, withdrawing all the funds including the settlement money.

“Trust funds are sacrosanct. The proper handling of trust funds is a core function of a lawyer’s fiduciary duty to the client. Wrongfully taking trust funds damages the client and has a seriously deleterious impact on the legal profession’s reputation,” the decision said.

The tribunal’s hearing panel found that Gantzert “without any doubt” committed professional misconduct when he misappropriated the funds.

“Lawyers cannot take settlement funds belonging to their clients,” the decision said.

Gantzert was also found to have committed misconduct by failing to communicate with his client, leaving her “completely in the dark.”

Gantzert did not participate in the hearing at all.

When Gantzert was disbarred, it was for misappropriating $62,521.58 that was paid as a settlement to a “vulnerable client” after a motor vehicle accident, according to a 2023 decision.

By that point, it had been roughly three years since he resigned his membership and ceased all communication with the law society. The 2023 decision notes attempts to contact Gantzert included representatives of the law society going to his home on “numerous occasions,” phone calls, emails, and “indirect” attempts via colleagues.