Misappropriating client funds, not telling the law society he faced criminal charges, falling asleep in court and using illegal substances — bought from ex-clients — were just some of the factors that led to the resignation of a Red Deer lawyer from the Law Society of Alberta.
Recently released documents by the law society detail complaints against Bradley Mulder, who was suspended from the society in October 2016 before his resignation was accepted in January of this year.
In one case, Mulder was paid a $1,000 retainer, but did not attend court on behalf of his client. This lead to a warrant issued for the arrest of his client. There are five instances where Mulder failed to attend court, leading to arrest warrants for his clients.
In the agreed statement of facts, Mulder said he used an “illegal substance.” The hearing before the law society was held in Calgary. It was chaired by Cal Johnson and included committee members Nancy Dilts and Louise Wasylenko.
“I admitted to the Law Society of Alberta investigators that I had an addiction and that I had purchased from former clients,” reads the statement. “I attended rehabilitation in 2006 and maintained a non-using lifestyle for four to five years, but eventually started using again and this has been an on-again, off-again struggle since then.”
During a court appearance, Mulder admits to falling asleep while the Crown Prosecutor was cross-examining a witness.
“At the time, I suffered from sleep apnea, which interfered with my sleep patterns and my ability to sleep well.”
He was also charged after a Feb. 10, 2017 arrest at a Sylvan Lake home with possession of a prohibited weapon and possession of counterfeit money. Mulder said the home belonged to one of his clients and when he was arrested, RCMP officers handcuffed me and put a jacket on him that did not belong to Mulder.
In the pocket of that jacket was a counterfeit $20 bill and a switchblade knife. The possession of counterfeit currency was withdrawn and the weapon charge was withdrawn after he completed extra judicial sanctions.
Mulder still faces criminal charges of possession of stolen property over $5,000 and under $5,000 from an incident near Rimbey. These charges have not been resolved and he is due to stand trial in April in Rimbey provincial court.
mcrawford@reddeeradvocate.com
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