A Law Society of British Columbia tribunal has handed a significant professional misconduct ruling against Neal Burton Wang, a lawyer based in Vancouver. Wang has been suspended for four months following findings related to his handling of various financial transactions over a two-year period. This suspension stems from serious concerns about his compliance with core regulatory duties expected of practicing lawyers.
The misconduct at the center of the tribunal’s decision involved several transactions from 2016 to 2018. One notable issue was Wang’s failure to make reasonable inquiries about the individuals and businesses involved before wiring $2.7 million from his lawyer’s trust account to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. This lapse raised alarms about the purpose and legitimacy of the transaction, given the international breadth and the large amount of money involved.
Further transactions compounded these issues, including the sale of a Toronto condominium associated with a company in Nevis, a Caribbean island known for complex corporate structures. Wang did not know who the beneficial owners were for this company, nor did the company have a bank account, which should have flagged his obligation to perform enhanced due diligence. These patterns reflected wider concerns around his professional conduct.
Describing the misconduct, the tribunal’s three-member panel—led by Thomas Spraggs—called it “both serious and wide-ranging.” The breaches spanned multiple client matters and involved several distinct but related failures to meet fundamental professional standards. The panel emphasized that this was not just a minor oversight but a sustained departure from what is expected of a practising lawyer.
A major failing highlighted was Wang’s neglect to obtain, record, and verify client identification documents. Such documentation is critically important under the law society’s anti-money laundering (AML) and anti-fraud safeguards. Proper client verification mechanisms are designed to protect both the public and the profession from being exploited for illegal purposes. Wang’s lapses undermined these safeguards, contributing to the tribunal’s serious view of his conduct.
Although Wang, who began practicing law in 1999, had no prior disciplinary history—a factor that might typically mitigate punishment—the panel found these breaches were significant and not technical in nature. This underscored the importance of maintaining high standards throughout a lawyer’s career, regardless of past conduct.
Details from an earlier panel shed more light on the troubling circumstances. In June 2018, Wang was instructed to wire nearly $2.72 million from his trust account to a Dubai company over two separate days. The panel found that one client involved was under investigation by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), with serious allegations pending. Instead of probing deeper into these red flags, Wang admitted he was relieved to simply complete the transactions to rid himself of uncomfortable funds—a reaction that the panel described as a failure to fulfill professional responsibilities.
The same earlier panel found troubling evidence indicating Wang might have backdated documents to suggest legal work had been done for these transactions. Due to these findings, the tribunal declared that Wang’s testimony was unreliable. This cast further doubt on Wang’s professionalism and judgment in managing client matters.
Importantly, the law society did not accuse Wang of directly facilitating money laundering. Instead, the focus was on his failure to comply with regulatory requirements and his neglect of the essential gatekeeping role lawyers have. By permitting his trust account to be used without performing substantial legal services or making necessary inquiries about the funds and transactions, Wang compromised his professional obligations.
The case also underscores broader concerns highlighted by the B.C. government-commissioned Cullen inquiry in 2022. That inquiry noted the significant risks trust accounts pose in terms of money laundering, given the usual assumption that communications between lawyer and client are privileged. This privilege generally keeps trust accounts out of the reach of law enforcement, making it crucial for lawyers to uphold stringent ethical standards.
This disciplinary case involving Neal Burton Wang serves as a stark reminder of the critical role lawyers play in safeguarding the integrity of financial transactions and the legal profession. Through adherence to client verification and due diligence requirements, lawyers help protect not only their clients but also the public from potential fraud and criminal activity.
