Solicitor has files taken over by another firm

A SOLICITOR alleged to have concealed substantial deficits in client accounts has agreed to have his practice files taken over by another legal firm.

The President of the High Court, Mr Justice Richard Johnson, said this and other agreed measures would mean an “orderly and efficient” clearing of the situation relating to proceedings by the Law Society against Ciarán Callan.

On the basis of undertakings yesterday by Mr Callan, including his continuing an undertaking not to practice, the judge adjourned the proceedings for three weeks. Last week, the court was told Mr Callan’s accounts at one stage this year showed an alleged deficit of €1.9 million but he recently lodged monies which, his solicitor told the Law Society, had paid that amount off and left an apparent surplus.

However, the Law Society, because of concerns that the amount of the deficit remained unknown, decided last week to seek account freezing and other orders.

Several orders were made by consent last week in proceedings by the society against Mr Callan, practicing as Callan and Company, Solicitors, Riverbank House, Dodder Park Drive, Dublin 14. A number of those orders were vacated yesterday in light of the agreement to transfer the files of his practice.

In an affidavit, Seamus McGrath of the Law Society’s Regulation Department said Mr Callan’s solicitor, Mr Sean Sexton, informed him there was a deficit in his client account, which had been concealed by a system of “teeming and lading” (hiding the loss of one client’s monies by replacing it with monies of another client). Mr Sexton had referred to the accounts being considerably in arrears. The society then convened an emergency meeting on November 13 last.

In another affidavit, Mary Devereux, an investigating accountant with the society said a second investigative report into Mr Callan’s practice of October 2, 2007, concluded her inspection could not be completed because of delays in updating accounting records.