Long after former newspaper tycoon Conrad Black began serving his sentence for fraud in a Florida prison, two of his former lawyers are to appear before the Law Society of Upper Canada, accused of conflict of interest.
Darren Sukonick and Beth DeMerchant, partners with Torys LLP at the time, will face a hearing in Toronto on April 26. They are accused of professional misconduct in Lord Black's sale of Canadian newspapers to CanWest Global Communications Corp. and Osprey Media in 2001.
The Law Society alleges the pair were wrong to represent Chicago-based Hollinger International Inc. while at the same time advising Lord Black and two former Hollinger executives. The allegations centre on the so-called non-compete payments paid after the papers were sold. The Law Society also alleges the two were wrong to advise Lord Black in his decision to renounce Canadian citizenship for a seat in Britain's House of Lords. The move, the Society alleges, could have hurt Hollinger, because it endangered the National Post's eligibility for tax breaks under foreign ownership rules.
A spokeswoman for the lawyers said yesterday in an e-mail that Ms. DeMerchant and Mr. Sukonick "look forward to demonstrating that they worked entirely within the Law Society's rules and accepted professional practices, and countering the allegations at a hearing before their colleagues."