Bar Association finds: Nanaimo lawyer sexually harassed client

A Nanaimo lawyer who was disbarred for sexually harassing a woman who sought his advice, sexually harassed another client, the Law Society of BC found.

Marc Andre Eckardt, who has also used the surname Scheirer, had his law license revoked in December 2023 after his conduct led to his conviction in November 2020. According to a society decision at the time, a woman came to him seeking advice on bail conditions for her husband and Eckardt placed his head on her chest and his hand on her leg, moving them “in the direction of her crotch.” He subsequently received a two-year suspended sentence.

The society sought to determine whether Eckardt was guilty of professional misconduct. In a decision released on June 6, a three-judge panel found that the lawyer behaved inappropriately toward a woman he represented in incidents between January 2016 and November 2017.

He had been hired to handle child support, a protective order and family law matters. The client was afraid of men, having suffered abuse throughout her life, but in June 2016 she walked into Eckardt’s office, the company stated. Eckardt then “approached her from behind, put his arms around her chest and pressed her body against the front of his body,” and she “froze in fear.” He also “began rubbing his socked foot on her feet and legs under (his) desk,” and the woman was “petrified.”

Eckardt also asked her if she wanted to have more children. When she said no, he replied, “how lucky he would be if she were the mother of his children,” according to the society.

The woman said she continued to seek legal advice from Eckardt because she disliked confrontation and was concerned about using another lawyer because he was seconded by Legal Aid BC and she knew it was “her word against that of a licensed attorney,” the society’s decision said.

The woman also reported a court hearing in October 2016 where Eckhardt appeared “very unkempt” and “drunk”. When he was outside the courtroom, he put his hand on her thigh, according to the verdict. A friend of the woman also testified that she saw the lawyer touching her friend inappropriately and that he smelled of alcohol and spoke indistinctly.

Since Eckardt did not respond to the club’s communication, it can be assumed that he admitted the facts.

According to the society’s code of professional conduct, lawyers are required to perform their legal profession and their duties to the public and their colleagues with integrity and honour. Dishonourable conduct, whether in private life or at work, reflects poorly on the profession and the administration of justice and the society “may be entitled to take disciplinary action”, the code states.

The panel found that Eckardt’s conduct was “sexual in nature” and had “negative consequences” for the woman, and ruled that his actions amounted to professional misconduct.