A Rotorua lawyer will have to pay nearly $28,000 in costs and is suspended from practicing for 18 months after faking an illness to avoid appearing in court.
Brett Cooper, a barrister who was practicing in Rotorua, was handed down the penalties by the New Zealand Lawyers and Conveyancers Disciplinary Tribunal in March after being found guilty of misconduct. He appealed the penalties to the High Court but was unsuccessful.
The sanctions relate to an incident on May 28, 2012, when Mr Cooper was scheduled to conduct a defended hearing in the Rotorua District Court but instead appeared for another client in Christchurch District Court.
Two weeks prior, Mr Cooper had emailed the Rotorua court asking the date of his case to be moved so he could attend the Christchurch case.
The presiding judge declined his request and ordered he be present at the Rotorua hearing.