The Law Society has issued High Court proceedings against a third solicitor in a month, out of concern over financial matters.
The matter was heard briefly by the court this morning, before being adjourned until next Monday to give his legal team time to read the legal papers.
The solicitor, whose identity is unknown, has given an undertaking to cease practising and to hand over his cheque books.
He has also pledges not use certain bank accounts before the matter returns before the court next Monday.
Senior Counsel Jack FitzGerald, representing the solicitor, told the President of the High Court, Mr Justice Richard Johnson, that it was a very serious matter and had very serious implications, and as a result he suggested the application should be heard in-camera.
He also applied for the matter to be put back until next Monday to give him time to read documents which he had only received 15 minutes prior to the hearing.
He said the alleged deficit figure has been reduced to 20 or 25% of the original figure mentioned in the legal documents.
Paul-Anthony McDermott, BL for the Law Society, said his instructions were that the matter should be heard in public for two reasons.
Firstly, he said that in other recent cases it had become known that the society had made such applications and rumours had circulated, leading to other solicitors being put under suspicion.
Secondly, he said, this case does not have the same level of seriousness as the other two recent cases, and if it were heard in-camera it might give rise to the suggestion that it was.
He also said the decision to take proceedings had been made at a meeting of the Law Society's regulation of practice committee last Tuesday. He acknowledged that Mr FitzGerald had only received papers on the case this morning, and said the society was happy to give him more time to read them. But he said the society was anxious that the matter be heard today due to its seriousness.
Mr Justice Johnson said the matter before the court was serious, but not nearly as serious as the other recent cases involving solicitors.
As a result, he said he would not hear the matter in-camera. But he said the solicitor's legal team had the liberty to file an affidavit on the matter in the meantime, and if facts presented themselves he would reconsider the issue.
He also said that despite the fact that this matter had been coming down the tracks for sometime, the notice given to the solicitor's legal team was short. He agreed to hear the matter in full on Monday.
