Qld lawyer’s supervision failure enables $3.2m theft

Despite knowing of her meagre salary and gambling addiction, a Gold Coast lawyer’s failure to properly supervise his employee resulted in more than $3.2 million being stolen from clients.

Keiwon Lee, the director of Southport Lawyers, has been publicly reprimanded and prohibited from being granted a practising certificate for five years over his failure to supervise an employee who stole just over $3,280,000 from the firm’s trust account.

The Legal Services Commissioner stressed Lee did not misappropriate money himself and derived no benefit from Kim’s theft.

Between July 2020 and June 2022, Southport Lawyers employee Michelle Kim deposited over $1,700,000 into her personal account, directed clients to deposit around $1,070,000 into her personal account, and deposited $474,745 into her housemate’s bank account.

Kim also directed just under $495,0000 from the trust account to unrelated third parties without client instructions.

She pleaded guilty to one count of fraud as an employee and was sentenced to nine years’ imprisonment.

Lee accepted that had he appropriately supervised Kim and the trust account, she would not have been able to misappropriate money.

He also accepted that on at least five occasions, he signed checks for payments from the trust account given to him by Kim that did not have the beneficiary provided, which allowed her to insert any name.

“Such dereliction of his professional responsibilities not only resulted in detriment to clients, but it has exposed the public to Kim’s unlawful activities and, ultimately, the profession, with significant claims being made against the fidelity fund,” Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal’s (QCAT) Justice Alan Wilson said.

Lee was on notice of Kim’s gambling habits from about September 2021 and spoke to her about them because he was “concerned it could negatively impact on the business”, QCAT heard. He was also provided with a copy of a self-exclusion casino note by Kim.

The tribunal was told Kim approached clients in early 2021 to borrow money and was warned about this by Lee, who then lent her between $1,000 and $3,000 on a few occasions.

As her employer, Lee was also aware that her basic weekly wage was $600, plus commission for each settlement she performed.

The Legal Services Commission said this amount was “very low”, especially where there may have been no property settlements, either because the firm would have no such work or arising from the time of year, such as over the Christmas and New Year’s holiday period.

“Despite Lee knowing of Kim’s gambling habits, and her very low salary, and her approaching clients to borrow money, he seemingly took no steps to monitor her apparently unrestricted access to, and/or control of, trust moneys,” Justice Wilson said.

Lee, who engaged in professional misconduct, was also ordered to complete a practice management course and trust accounting remedial course, pay a pecuniary penalty of $7,000, and pay costs.

Citation: Legal Services Commissioner v Lee [2026] QCAT 34.

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