UPDATED WITH PANEL DECISION
Winnipeg lawyer Jack King pleaded guilty to three counts of professional misconduct — sexual harassment, conflict, and failing to conduct one’s self with integrity — before the Law Society of Manitoba today. The three-person discipline panel that heard the case opted to reprimand King rather than impose a suspension, the usual punishment for sexual harassment.
King, who is at the centre of a sex scandal involving his wife, family court judge Lori Douglas, and a former client.
At his discipline hearing, King apologized for his actions, calling them “disgraceful” and “absolutely grotesque” and also publicly said sorry to his wife. “She did absolutely nothing wrong other than trust me when she should not have,” he said, according to media reports. “She tried to indulge me in my strange tastes. . . . To my wife, I can never apologize enough.”
The lawyer was accused by former client Alex Chapman of showing him sexually explicit pictures of Douglas and pressuring him to have sex with her.
As part of the plea deal announced Monday, King is not expected to be disbarred or suspended from working as a lawyer — but other penalties, such as fines, could be imposed.
The prosecution and defence jointly suggested Monday morning there should be no suspension or disbarment for King as a result of the offences.
Douglas is being investigated by the Canadian Judicial Council and has stopped hearing cases until the review is complete.
