Ottawa (June 2025) – Former Rockland, Ontario lawyer Stéphane Langlois has pleaded guilty to 12 criminal charges stemming from a years-long investigation into the disappearance of millions from client trust accounts.
Langlois, who was disbarred in 2021, entered guilty pleas Monday at the Ottawa Courthouse, just hours before his trial was scheduled to begin. The charges include four counts of fraud over $5,000 and eight counts related to forged documents, including uttering, possessing, and trafficking forged materials.
According to Crown prosecutors, the offences involve the misappropriation of over $3 million from law firm trust funds, uncovered after colleagues at Charron Langlois LLP filed complaints with the Law Society of Ontario. The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) launched a criminal investigation, culminating in charges in 2022.
Langlois’s lawyer, Christian Deslauriers, said his client acknowledged the strength of the Crown’s case and chose to plead guilty in hopes of receiving a lighter sentence. “It’s to the advantage of the judicial system, the victims, and to his advantage somehow as well,” Deslauriers told Radio-Canada.
The Crown and defence have agreed to a proposed sentence of six years in prison, which will be reviewed by Justice Alexandre Kaufman before being finalized.
Langlois had been a practicing lawyer in Clarence-Rockland, a community located about 30 km east of Ottawa. His disbarment and the subsequent criminal charges followed a lengthy period during which clients and colleagues sought accountability for the missing funds.
