A Brisbane lawyer who lost his career, firm, and reputation has been declared permanently unfit to practise, and his name has been struck off the roll of solicitors.
The latest update to Neil Lawler’s legal career was handed down by the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal last week. It centred on a range of offending, including Lawler appearing drunk in court and recording a roadside breath test more than five times the legal limit.
Lawler, who became a lawyer in 1998 and held his practising certificate until 2020, was a partner of former Brisbane firm Lawler Magill, which was raided by the Queensland Corruption Commission in 2018.
Former Brisbane lawyer Neil Lawler.
According to documents before QCAT, he appeared for a client in court in 2020, was observed to be red and flushed, unsteady on his feet, and there was a smell of liquor in the courtroom during the incident.
After the sentence, Lawler left the court, returned to his vehicle, and was intercepted by police. His roadside blood-alcohol reading was 0.27 per cent, which is in the high range.
He pleaded guilty to driving under the influence and was sentenced to 12 months’ probation and 100 hours of community service.
At his sentencing, he represented himself and provided misleading information, either knowingly or recklessly, according to QCAT’s findings. He claimed he had returned to his vehicle to charge his phone and had no intention of driving.
“To date, [Lawler] has taken no steps to correct the misleading statements he made to the Magistrates Court on March 5, 2020,” the QCAT documents state.
The Legal Services Commission then launched an investigation into Lawler and sent him a show-cause notice to prove he was still fit to practise.
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