The tribunal said René Joan Gantzert stole tens of thousands of dollars from client
A British Columbia lawyer has been disbarred for the second time in less than two years for stealing tens of thousands of dollars in client funds, according to the Law Society of British Columbia Tribunal.
The tribunal disbarred personal injury lawyer René Joan Gantzert on Jan. 14. According to the tribunal’s decision, Gantzert settled a personal injury claim on behalf of his client for $18,200. Instead of paying the funds to his client, he withdrew the payment for himself and did not respond to the client's inquiry about the settlement.
“Trust funds are sacrosanct,” the tribunal said. “The proper handling of trust funds is a core function of the lawyers’ fiduciary duty to the client. Wrongful taking of trust funds damages the client and has a seriously deleterious impact on the legal profession’s reputation.
“Absent exceptional circumstances, disbarment is the presumptive sanction for willfully taking trust funds,” the tribunal added. “That sanction is necessary in order to ensure denunciation and deterrence, as well as to send the correct message to the profession and the public that this type of serious misconduct will result in serious consequences.”
This is the second time Gantzert has been disbarred. In November 2023, another tribunal panel disbarred the lawyer for misappropriating $62,521.28 in trust funds belonging to another client.
Gantzert resigned from the LSBC in 2020. However, the tribunal said in its decision that it had the authority to make its finding regarding Gantzert even though he was a former law society member.
The tribunal noted that it has not heard from Gantzert since his resignation. He did not respond to multiple attempts by the tribunal to reach him and did not file any materials about the disbarment case.
The tribunal added that Gantzert has not yet paid any of the costs related to his 2023 disbarment.
In a statement on Friday, the LSBC said the tribunal panel “considered the serious nature of [Gantzert’s] conduct” and his professional conduct record. The latter includes the 2023 disbarment and his failure to cooperate with the law society’s investigation into his misconduct.
The LSBC told Canadian Lawyer on Monday that it did not have further comments to add.
Gantzert could not be reached for comment.
