Lawyers Weekly Australia reports
A Central Queensland man has been banned from practising law in the state after he was found to have provided legal advice without having an Australian practising certificate.
In charges brought by the Queensland Legal Services Commissioner and heard by Justice Glenn Martin AM in the Supreme Court of Queensland, Gladstone man Surendra Raghoobar was found to have engaged in legal practice in Queensland, despite not being qualified to practise law in Australia.
The judgment comes after legal professionals in Gladstone contacted the LSC, eventually leading to the execution of a search warrant for Mr Ragoobar’s home.
During this search, 31 document binders were seized, containing documents filed within various courts, tax invoices and communication from up to 20 different clients, concerning 24 “unique matters”.
Mr Raghoobar has a law degree from the United Kingdom, which he obtained from the University of Kent in 1995, before relocating to Australia over a decade later.
From 2010 to 2019, Mr Raghoobar worked as a consultant for two law firms in Queensland: Kenny and Partners and Ramos and Co Lawyers, before starting his own business to continue to provide legal assistance to friends and acquaintances.
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