Former justice minister Jonathan Denis' hearing set in November for alleged professional misconduct

A disciplinary hearing will take place in November for former justice minister Jonathan Denis, who is accused of professional misconduct in his role as a lawyer.

The Law Society of Alberta, which regulates lawyers in the province, issued two citations in March.

Denis is accused of acting for a client, identified by the law society only as "R.M." while in a conflict of interest.

The second citation alleges Denis threatenedto file a complaint to a regulatory authority "in an attempt to gain a benefit for his client, C.K.," according to the law society's citations.

A one-day conduct hearing has been set for Nov. 14.

• Former Alberta justice minister Jonathan Denis cleared on contempt of court conviction

Denis served as justice minister under the then-Progressive Conservative government from 2012 to 2015.

After losing his seat in the 2015 provincial election, Denis founded Guardian Law Group.

Denis cleared of contempt conviction

Denis made headlines in the province last year when he was found to be in contempt of court after a letter was sent on his behalf to former chief medical examiner Anny Sauvageau, threatening to sue her.

At the time, Sauvageau was in the middle of testifying as part of her wrongful dismissal lawsuit against the Alberta government.

The judge found the letter was an attempt to intimidate Sauvageau during her testimony.

Ultimately the contempt conviction was struck down after the Alberta Court of Appeal ruled there were procedural flaws in the original judge's decision. Sauvageau later walked away from the lawsuit.

Law society troubles for Madu, Shandro

Two other former Alberta justice ministers are also before the law society, accused of professional misconduct in unrelated cases.

Tyler Shandro, who lost his bid for re-election in May, is in the middle of a hearing over complaints that in the early days of the pandemic he behaved unprofessionally during interactions with three doctors and a member of the public.

Final arguments are set to take place in September.

Last month, the law society issued former justice minister Kaycee Madu a citation.

It will hold a hearing to determine whether Madu engaged in unprofessional conduct by calling the Edmonton police chief after he was issued a $300 traffic ticket. A date for that hearing has not been set.