Does a solicitor have to disgorge secret profit that was not disclosed?

British Columbia, Canada


The following excerpt is from Canson Ent. Ltd. v. Boughton & Co., 1989 CanLII 2806 (BC CA):

While Jacks v. Davis says that the characterization of the wrong and the approach to damages do not depend on whether the solicitor himself shared in the secret profit that was not disclosed, it is important to note that when the solicitor has shared in the secret profit he must be required to disgorge the profit as part of the damages awarded against him. That disgorgement will introduce an additional element into the calculation of the award, though it will not necessarily change the amount. Whether it does so will depend on whether the amount of the secret profit is equal to the difference in value between what the plaintiff paid and what the land was worth.

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