Former lawyer pleads guilty to $375,000 fraud

The lawyer pleaded guilty in court. (Image: Supplied)
This story was written using AI and overseen by staff reporters as part of a trial. A former Bay of Plenty lawyer, Paulette Main, has pleaded guilty to fraudulently claiming nearly $375,000 from a legal support scheme funded by the Ministry of Justice.Main appeared in the Tauranga District Court and admitted to one representative charge of obtaining by deception and one representative charge of obstructing the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) investigation.She submitted over 1,200 false claims to the Ministry of Justice’s Family Legal Advi...
Subscribe to BusinessDesk
Stay informed on business, government and financial developments across New Zealand.
- Deeply researched, twice-edited and fact-checked news
- Annual subscribers also receive a complimentary subscription to The Wall Street Journal
- Personalised email news alerts, plus gift up to 5 stories a month to non-subscribers
You can cancel anytime with two clicks, an email or a phone call.
Find out
more.
We are serious about journalism.
{{ registerForm.errors.get('form') }}
We had trouble validating your card. It's possible your card provider is preventing us from charging the card. Please contact your card provider or customer support.
{{ cardForm.errors.get('card') }}
{{ registerForm.errors.get('plan') }}
{{ __(plans[index].name) | capitalize }}
{{ plans[index].attributes.old_price | currency }}
{{ plans[index].price | currency }}
All subscriptions auto renew but are easy to cancel.
Tax: {{ taxAmount(selectedPlan) | currency }}
Total Price Including Tax: {{ priceWithTax(selectedPlan) | currency }} {{ selectedPlan.type == 'user' && spark.chargesUsersPerSeat ? '/ '+ spark.seatName : '' }} {{ selectedPlan.type == 'user' && spark.chargesUsersPerTeam ? '/ '+ __('teams.team') : '' }} / {{ __(selectedPlan.interval) | capitalize }}
Total Price Including Tax: {{ priceWithTax(selectedPlan) | currency }} {{ selectedPlan.type == 'user' && spark.chargesUsersPerSeat ? '/ '+ spark.seatName : '' }} {{ selectedPlan.type == 'user' && spark.chargesUsersPerTeam ? '/ '+ __('teams.team') : '' }} / {{ __(selectedPlan.interval) | capitalize }}
{{ registerForm.errors.get('email') }}
Not convinced yet?
Subscribe to our free 7am Headlines newsletter.
A quick summary of everything BusinessDesk has published in the previous 24 hours. No BusinessDesk
subscription needed.