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A Kelowna lawyer has been fined $12,000 by the Law Society of B.C. following his criminal conviction for threatening his ex-wife.

The $12,000 fine plus $1,000 for fees comes almost two years after William Thomas Clarke was found guilty of threatening to cause death or bodily harm to his former spouse during an incident in December 2017.

In a recently published decision, The Law Society of B.C. says Clarke committed conduct "unbecoming the profession."

Clarke practiced family law in Kelowna and had been a practicing lawyer for more than two decades.

In January 2019 a judge sentenced Clarke to a 12-month conditional discharge, meaning the lawyer would avoid having a criminal record providing he abided by the terms of his probation for the year.

According to the decision, Clarke separated from his spouse in 2015 after 17 years of marriage and had joint custody of their child.

Following the separation, Clarke and his ex-wife – referred to as LC in the decision – had been amicable with each other but their relationship had soured. The decision says Clarke was resentful the settlement agreement had forced him to hand over a condo he owned in Ontario to her.

"He continued to harbour resentment and be irritated by this fact," the decision reads.

In December 2017 a conversation over childcare turned after LC asked about the condo.

"(Clarke) went on to talk about a former criminal client who could solve problems by menacing, intimidating, hurting people, or just making them disappear," reads the decision.

Clarke said people could end up with "bullets in them" and LC should be "careful or be warned." Clarke continued to say he didn't care if he spent the rest of his life in jail.

"His words were delivered in a cold, cool, and angry manner so as to frighten, intimidate and threaten LC," the trial judge said.

Clarke also arranged to collect his weapons from a friend's house and made LC aware he was doing so.

During previous communications, Clarke had emailed LC and stated: "I want you dead." On another occasion, he called her to say "I bitterly hate you."

Clarke pleaded not guilty and testified he was "embarking on a humorous rant."

The judge didn't buy it.

"Why on earth would he be telling her all of these awful things if not to scare the living daylights out of her?" the judge said.

Clarke has maintained his innocence throughout and appealed his conviction unsuccessfully at the B.C. Supreme Court and the B.C. Court of Appeal. He also wrote to the Law Society on several occasions saying he did not threaten his former partner.

The Law Society says as a person practising family or criminal law Clarke should know "all too well" the trauma that threats against a current or former intimate partner can cause.

In a joint submission, Clarke's lawyer and the Society put forward a $12,000 fine.

In deciding whether the fine was just, the Law Society pointed to Clarke's previous 21 years as a lawyer stating that apart from his criminal conduct, Clarke has a reputation as a "person of good character" both professionally and throughout the community.

In assessing whether a $12,000 fine was acceptable, the Law Society also pointed to Clarke's clean probation period, his apology and repaired relationship to LC, and that he had counselling for stress and impulse control. The Society states the judge concluded the likelihood of him repeating his criminal conduct was very small.

Ultimately, the Law Society agreed on a $12,000 fine plus $1,000 for fees and Clarke was not suspended from practicing law.

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