A defence lawyer has been fined by the Bermuda Bar Council. Bruce Swan pleaded guilty at a disciplinary tribunal to a charge that he practised as a barrister without holding a valid practising certificate.

The council fined him $600, which is to be forfeited to the Crown, and ordered him to pay costs of $1,000 to the Bermuda Bar Association following a complaint lodged against him on November 5 last year.

Mr Swan said: “What happened was at the end of November 2024, I had an emergency surgery and ended up in hospital in Boston for two weeks.”

The Bermuda Bar Council made the complaint against him and he was charged with “engaging in conduct unbefitting a barrister”.

The particulars were that between the January 1, 2025 and January 25, 2025, he practised as a barrister without holding a valid practising certificate.

Mr Swan explained: “I was under the impression it was paid. It amounts to $1,200. I paid it immediately thereafter because I had just received funds and they restored my certificate. I am back practising and now I just need to keep up to date with my fees.”

He remarked that setting an alarm on his phone calendar was a good idea to avoid any further repercussions.

The Bar Association was contacted for comment. Mr Swan appeared at the Magistrates’ Court in June last year and pleaded guilty to not having a valid practising certificate.

Mr Swan, from Devonshire, apologised for the offence and senior magistrate Maxanne Anderson sentenced him to a two-year conditional discharge.

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