Hearing Proceeds After Adjournment Request Denied

A four-day disciplinary hearing for suspended Fredericton lawyer Stephen James Hill will proceed after a panel denied his request for another adjournment. Hill was suspended by the New Brunswick Law Society in February 2025 due to multiple allegations of misconduct and misappropriated funds.

The original hearing was scheduled for November 25-28, 2025, but was adjourned to allow Hill to secure legal representation. The matter was then postponed until March 23, 2026.

Delay Tactics Alleged

On Monday, Hill appeared without legal representation and requested another adjournment until May, citing a conflict of interest with his former lawyer, Mel Norton. He stated he had recently retained Rodney Gillis, but preparing Gillis was virtually impossible due to Hill serving a five-day custodial sentence until Sunday in a civil contempt matter.

Robert Basque, the discipline committee panel chair, denied the request and proceeded with the hearing. New Brunswick Law Society counsel Destiny Grant argued that Hill is attempting to manipulate the system to orchestrate delay.

“He is manipulating the system to orchestrate delay.”

Destiny Grant, New Brunswick Law Society counsel

Grant outlined a history of extensions granted to Hill, including a previous adjournment under similar circumstances. She asserted that Hill presented no evidence and repeatedly requested extensions, characterizing it as an elaborate attempt to delay the inevitable.

Allegations of Misconduct and Misappropriation

The New Brunswick Law Society outlined more than a dozen allegations of professional misconduct in a nine-page notice of complaint posted in November. These include failure to complete required work, failure to follow client instructions, and misappropriation of client funds.

The registrar found Hill failed to respond to complaints, failed to cooperate in investigations, and failed to respond to communications from the law society.

Grant stated the core of the society’s argument is that Hill failed to respond to the notice of complaint within the required 20-day timeframe, thus deemed to have admitted all charges.

Hill filed a reply to the notice of complaint on March 16, 2026, generally denying the factual accuracy of the allegations and denying that he engaged in conduct deserving of sanction.

However, Grant described this reply as a blanket denial lacking explanation or justification for the delayed filing.

Significant Financial Payouts to Clients

Among the complaints are allegations that Hill failed to complete client mortgage transfers, resulting in judgments against clients and potential property seizure. In one case from September 2024, a client was compensated $82,453.57 through the law society’s compensation fund.

Another complaint alleges Hill retained proceeds from a property sale in July 2024 without client authorization, disbursing funds in installments over several months. The compensation fund ultimately paid out $102,447.52.

A further complaint from November 2024 alleges Hill failed to complete a mortgage transfer and misappropriated funds, leading to a $456,432.81 payout from the compensation fund to the clients.

Joleen Dable, the law society’s registrar of complaints, stated that Hill faces a total of 29 complaints. She indicated that the total payouts to former clients currently amount to approximately $1.2 million.

“So far the payouts is approximately $1.2 million… What we have is definitely a substantial case. There are many complainants involved and we’re just trying to bring the matter forward and to put it to rest.”

Joleen Dable, Law Society of New Brunswick registrar of complaints