Disbarred veteran lawyer now sued by former divorce client

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This article was published 13/10/2015 (3978 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A veteran Winnipeg lawyer who was disbarred is being sued by a former client who claims she had to sell her house and cottage due to his lies during her divorce proceedings.

Barry Gorlick, along with his former law firm Monk Goodwin, are being sued for unspecified “special, general, punitive and aggravated damages” by Dana Hansch.

In a statement of claim, filed in Manitoba Court of Queen’s Bench last week, Hansch said she had to sell her house and cottage to cover the debts she accumulated while Gorlick kept promising her that a divorce settlement worth millions of dollars was being worked out. She had been married to businessman Norbert Hansch for about 20 years when she filed for divorce in 2001.

“(She) believed that she could maintain the lifestyle that she had previously enjoyed,” the lawsuit states.

Because of Gorlick’s continuing assurances, she spent “monies and depleted her assets on the belief that she would be receiving millions of dollars.”

“If the defendants had not made the false representations, she would have altered her lifestyle and would not have borrowed any monies.”

Hansch’s claim states she no longer has assets of significant value and is suffering from mental distress.

No statement of defence has been filed and the allegations have not been proven in court.

Gorlick could not be reached for comment.

Hansch’s case was taken into account by the Manitoba Law Society during its investigation and hearing that ultimately disbarred Gorlick last June. Gorlick had admitted to 15 counts of professional misconduct.

The society was told Gorlick repeatedly lied to the woman for years, including telling her the Supreme Court would hear her case and that lawyers in the United States and Germany were also involved.

The society heard Gorlick began loaning the woman money to pay her bills, helped her get a bank loan, persuaded another client to loan her $200,000, and lied to the Canada Revenue Agency about her financial situation.

The society heard Gorlick actually did nothing on the case through the years.

The lawsuit states Gorlick told the woman her divorce settlement would be between $30 and $50 million.

Gorlick, who was a past president of the Canadian Bar Association, told the society his problems began when his elderly mother became ill in 2006, and became worse when his 25-year marriage began to collapse two years later.

Shortly after Gorlick’s disbarment, his girlfriend, lawyer Maria Mitousis, was severely injured after a package she opened exploded.

kevin.rollason@freepress.mb.ca