Alnaz Jiwa, a sole practitioner in Toronto, was among the lawyers who got stung by this scheme.
He told The Lawyers Weekly that last December, a man identifying himself as “John Robinson,” wanted Jiwa to oversee the financing of a paving-equipment business “Robinson” was establishing.
Jiwa met with the man, who showed him what appeared to be a valid Ontario driver’s licence along with a social insurance card, and agreed to work on the file.
To help secure the business loan, Jiwa dealt with a broker, who called himself “Kevin Simmons” and arranged the financing through an Alberta-based company known as “Small Business Finance Corporation.” The company sent Jiwa what was supposed to be a certified cheque in the amount of $311,950 that he deposited into his trust account. Jiwa then wrote a cheque for $255,950, payable to a numbered company (“2139008 Ontario Inc.), which he then gave to “Robinson” for the purchase of equipment. There was also an invoice from the company for the amount.
A few days later, Jiwa was contacted by a representative from his bank, TD Canada Trust, and was told the cheque was counterfeit. He then approached LawPRO and an insurance adjuster then informed him the cheque did not bear the two sets of initials required to certify it — a point the bank missed.
Since the initial $311,950 was counterfeit, Jiwa had also overdrawn his trust account by about $39,000 and the bank threatened to sue him. Under his insurance policy, LawPRO will only cover the amount of funds he had in his trust account.
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