A lawyer has been struck off after making a series of ‘horrific racist and misogynist’ comments, including telling a Muslim colleague to ‘go back to Afghanistan and educate the Taliban’.
Victor Stockinger, 61, of Bloomsbury, London, was dragged in front of his governing body after three women made complaints about his offensive remarks.
The former solicitor claimed the victims were only offended by his ‘ice-breaker’ remarks because of ‘wokeism’ – but the board found the evidence against him to be ‘entirely sincere’ and he will have to pay legal costs of £41,850.
Among the comments made, Mr Stockinger told a procurement boss, who is of African heritage, that Africans ‘were no good at business and never will be’ as it was ‘Indians and Europeans who made the Congo civil.’
He also shocked guests at a work event by telling the sexist joke: ‘The definition of a successful woman is one that can afford to spend anything she likes, the definition of a successful man is one who can afford such a woman.’
Mr Stockinger went on to question a Jewish lawyer on whether she was really Jewish at all, and told an Afghan human rights lawyer that she should ‘return to Afghanistan to educate the Taliban on terrorism.’
The offensive comments were made at a work event at the High Court, held by the Solicitors’ Association of Higher Court Advocates in 2019.
Nimi Bruce, for the Solicitors’ Regulatory Authority (SRA), said his remarks at the function were racially, ethically, and religiously motivated.
Before Mr Stockinger was struck off on Friday, the Solicitors’ Disciplinary Tribunal heard the victims speak out.
The procurement boss told the tribunal: ‘I was one of the only non-legal persons at the event. I didn’t know whether he had victimised me in particular.
‘I was one of the only people of colour at the event. I felt that the conversation would not have been had with anyone else.
‘I thought the conversation was being held with me because of my ancestry. I was aghast. I felt quite scared to do anything about it.’
Tribunal chair Paul Housego said solicitors must conduct themselves in a way ‘which reflects everyone’s personal characteristics’.
He said solicitors should ’embrace the qualities of equality, diversity and inclusion’ but instead, Mr Stockinger had made ‘stereotypical assumptions and been patronising.’
He said: ‘This is not wokeism as Mr Stockinger suggests.
‘The depth of hurt, humiliation and anger felt, even two years later by the young and diverse legal professionals to whom Mr Stockinger misspoke at that meeting was plain by their evidence to us, which we found entirely sincere.’
‘People should not be expected to tolerate this on the basis that in the past people did so,’ he added.
The lawyer was also found guilty of the more serious allegation of dishonesty by misleading his regulatory body over a client complaint.
He told the Solicitors’ Regulatory Authority in a letter that there was an appeal against a court decision when there was not.
Mr Stockinger had insisted all his remarks were ‘ice-breakers’ and accused the three women of colluding together.
He claimed the woman were part of an attack planned to help the procurement director’s partner, known as Person G, who allegedly has a grudge against Mr Stockinger.
‘(Person G) had an axe to grind against me. He has got long standing issues and grievances with me,’ claimed Mr Stockinger.
‘He has concocted a cabal of people who needed to make a complaint. They were all connected with each other. They were out on a mission that night.
‘Why is it that these people who were all connected with Person G were all offended?’
He denied making racially, ethnically, or religiously motivated statements, and failing to comply with an SRA investigation.
The sole practitioner, admitted to the profession in 1990, also denied failing to comply with orders ‘made in proceedings requiring him to make costs payments to other parties’.
But the charges were found proven and he was struck off after 31 years in the profession and ordered to pay legal bills worth £41,850.
Mr Stockinger was reportedly tearful and gasped after he was found guilty, saying: ‘I’m traumatised’.
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