Northern Ireland Law Society chief urged to step down over character reference for Lloyd-Lavery

By Rebecca Black, Press Association

The chief executive of the Law Society of Northern Ireland has been urged to resign after providing a character reference for a man convicted of historical sexual offences.

Abuse survivor Nicola Bannon, one of four women indecently assaulted by their former schoolteacher William Lloyd-Lavery at a Belfast school, made the call after David Lavery provided the reference for his cousin.

Law Society president Mark Borland said in a statement that he is “deeply sorry if the society has in any way compounded their pain”, adding it has conducted an internal process.

Lloyd-Lavery, 77, of Richmond Avenue in Lisburn, who went on to work for a number of UUP MLAs, was sentenced to two years in prison after being found guilty of six counts of indecent assault at a school he taught at in the 1970s.

If I was in a similar situation, I would resignNicola Bannon, abuse survivor

Former Ulster Unionist Party chairman David Campbell also provided a good character reference for Lloyd-Lavery, which sparked questions over the practice.

Ms Bannon said while she appreciated that Mr Lavery has apologised for his “severe lack of judgment”, she believes he should resign as chief executive of the Law Society.

“But honestly that questions whether or not he is the right person to be leading an institution of such importance as the Law Society of Northern Ireland,” she told the BBC.

“If I was in a similar situation, I would resign.”

Earlier this week Mr Lavery was removed from his role as a human rights commissioner by Northern Ireland Secretary Sir Chris Bryant.

A Northern Ireland Office spokesperson said: “The public rightly expects the highest standards of integrity and professionalism from those in public appointments.

“An investigation and an independent review were initiated by the NI Human Rights Commission (NIHRC) after public reports revealed that its commissioner, David Lavery, had given a reference to a relative convicted of historical and serious sexual offences.

“This independent review concluded that in providing this reference, Mr Lavery had breached the NIHRC Code of Governance and was capable of bringing the commission into disrepute and demonstrated a severe failure of judgment regarding public office responsibilities.

“Having considered the findings of this independent review, the Secretary of State as the appointing minister has terminated Mr Lavery’s appointment with immediate effect.”

Mr Borland said: “I listened to Nicola Bannon this morning and her powerful testimony about how she feels as a victim.

“I profoundly regret the distress and trauma that this has caused for her and for the other victims of William Lloyd Lavery. I am deeply sorry if the society has in any way compounded their pain.

“The Law Society has conducted an internal process and for reasons of confidentiality we are limited in what we can say publicly.

“I know that will be disappointing but I want to assure Nicola and other victims that we hear them, we are listening to their concerns and experiences and we are committed to ensuring that their voice is heard in the public debate about the use of character references following conviction.

“We will take steps immediately to convene that discussion with our members and we will seek to include the voices of victims and survivors including, if they felt appropriate, the victims in this case.

“We recognise the impact these matters have had and we are committed to doing all we can to support the victims in any way possible.”