Disgraced notary banned, handed suspended sentence for misusing clients funds

A notary has been handed a suspended sentence and was banned from holding a warrant after being found guilty of misappropriating funds given to him by his client.

The funds were handed to him by the client to settle taxes after they bought two garages.

Pierre Falzon, 64, was convicted of misappropriating €850 from a couple who had paid him stamp duty and capital gains when buying two garages in Swieqi in 2010. Despite the couple paying all expenses, Falzon had failed to register the property transfer or forward any taxes to the authorities.

These funds which were deposited into his wife’s account and were never returned until after police intervention.

Magistrate Rachel Montebello sentenced Falzon to one year in prison, suspended for three years and ordered him to repay his clients €850. Moreover, the court also disqualified him from holding a notarial warrant.

However, Falzon was acquitted of several other misappropriation charges after the court rules that whilst he was negligent and breached conditions of his professional obligations, the evidence did not prove beyond reasonable doubt that what he did was with malicious intention.

The prosecution brought forward multiple arguments, dating back to 2009 to 2011. These involved unregistered property transfers, unpaid taxes, and delays that left clients unable to register inherited property in their names.

In another instance, a buyer claimed to have paid €425 in stamp duty for a garage in Birkirkara, but the court noted there was no proof the money had actually been given to Falzon.

The court also heard that Falzon spent about a year abroad during the period in question, and on returning, settled some of the outstanding tax payments. His defence argued that the delays were partly caused by court-imposed garnishee and attachment orders that froze his accounts, as well as his wife’s ill health.

While acknowledging his professional negligence, the court found that the only proven case of misappropriation involved the Swieqi couple, whose money was deposited in his wife’s bank account and never transferred to the tax authorities.

Magistrate Montebello also criticised the way the proceedings were conducted against Falzon, describing it as a “classic case” of poor administration of justice.

Inspector Rennie Stivala prosecuted.

Lawyers Michael Schiriha and Roberto Spiteri appeared for Falzon.