TORONTO -- There is a disturbing epidemic of 鈥渇ake lawyers鈥� scamming vulnerable Canadians out of hundreds of thousands of dollars, with eight caught in B.C. earlier this month alone.
Lawyer Tanya Walker says that the practice of obtaining fake degrees, law or otherwise, is 鈥渜uite common鈥� online and worth a billion dollars worldwide.
鈥淭he most vulnerable segment of the population [to fake lawyers] are baby boomers, aging people because they may not be in tune as much with technology as the younger generation,鈥� Walker said on CTV鈥檚 Your Morning Friday.
Walker said that new immigrants or those wishing to move to Canada are also vulnerable, as there may be a language barrier and may not know how to verify a lawyer鈥檚 credentials.
Fake lawyers can do 鈥渁 lot鈥� of damage, Walker said, as 鈥渢he judgment is not automatically overturned because you are represented by a fake lawyer, you have to demonstrate that there was a miscarriage of justice.鈥�
If the victim of a fake lawyer is unable to prove a miscarriage of justice, the original judgment can still stand, she said.
Walker said that with real, regulated and licensed lawyers, clients with an issue can report them to the law society and pursue compensation up to $500,000 鈥� or sue the lawyer and pursue a payout from their insurer. None of those options are available with a fake lawyer.
鈥淎ll a judge does for you when you win is write that you have won [against a fake lawyer], it鈥檚 up to you to collect, so if the person does not have any assets鈥� you are out of luck,鈥� Walker said.
Walker said that if you are in need of a lawyer, always verify the lawyer鈥檚 credentials, try to visit their office, call the law society and double check their registration number and 鈥渂e suspicious if they do not have any pictures on their website or it鈥檚 too good to be true.鈥�
Lawyers are generally only allowed to accept 鈥渁round $7,500 in cash鈥� per file, Walker said, so anyone asking for exorbitant amounts like $50,000 should 鈥渟end up a red flag.鈥�
