Payroll/HR incompetence. Overpayment AFTER leaving.

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Spending someone else's money is classified as theft, apparently.

A promising start for a budding young lawyer to have a criminal conviction.

www.irishexaminer.com

€51k lodged to wrong bank account

A woman went on a “massive spending spree” after a bank accidentally deposited €51,000 into her bank account.
www.irishexaminer.com www.irishexaminer.com

Margaret McDonnell, aged 23, ate out every night for two weeks, brought her friends and family out for dinner, and bought gifts including two crystal vases and a “crystal mushroom lamp”.

She also spent the money on items for her two children including on bedclothes, clothes, and shoes, Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard.

Oisin Clarke, defending, said it was a case of the goose laying golden eggs and McDonnell spending the money before it stopped.
McDonnell, from Rathvilly Park, Finglas, Dublin, pleaded guilty to 13 counts of theft of cash from Bank of Ireland on dates between March 7 and 16, 2013. Between large ATM withdrawals and money spent in shops and restaurants, a total of €24,946 was taken.

Judge Cormac Quinn adjourned the case to April next and ordered a Probation Services report to assess McDonnell’s suitability for community service.
 
bmount said:
Of course some money was spent, shes a student. I think this problem is compounded by the fact she is a student
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Doesn't appear to be a valid defence in the other case.

Asked if she was bothered by the thefts, she told gardaí: “If only you knew me, you would know I was bothered by this. Any young girl on social welfare like me would have done what I did.”
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Take it easy there Brendan.

I appreciate the several other measured replies. They have really helped. It is a discussion.
It will be dealt with.
 
Its irrelevant the the employer was a bank.

Its irrelevant that the recipient is a student.

It was an error by the former employer.

Recipient aknowledged they should t have received this money.

The recipient owes this unearned money back to former employer that made an honest mistake. The fact you say the recipient has no intention of returning the funds is pure theft.

The term chancer springs to mind
 
ArthurMcB said:
Its irrelevant that the recipient is a student.
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While I agree in general, it's relevant that she is training to be a solicitor.

a 10 week placement in a large Bank to help fund Fe1 law exams
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Maybe a conviction for theft would be helpful?

About the FE-1 Exam​

The FE-1 exam is normally held twice a year in Spring and Autumn. You can only sit the exam if you have passed or are exempt from the Preliminary Examination.

It consists of the following eight papers:

  1. Company Law
  2. Constitutional Law
  3. Law of Contract
  4. Criminal Law - practical experience of the courts or prison system an advantage
  5. European Union Law
  6. Equity
  7. Real Property
  8. Law of Tort
No mention of "finders, keepers" there.

Brendan
 
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And I don’t think a judge would to be too impressed by a plea that she didn’t know she was doing anything wrong .

I do have some sympathy with her but she needs to sort it out and the bank can’t demand it all back in one go, given that they messed up so badly . I agree with the previous poster that she should pay back what she can and agree a schedule to pay back the rest
 
I can see this is turning into a bit of a lecture and a twitter like troll for something that hasnt been dealt with yet.
 
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bmount said:
I can see this is turning into a bit of a lecture and a twitter like troll for something that hasnt been dealt with yet.

Many thanks to the measured replies, you know who you are.
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She should just repay the money.

You’ve come here seeking advice and thrown your rattle out of the pram somewhat when people haven’t responded in the manner you’d hoped.

Keeping the money is theft, your daughter is very early in her journey as a lawyer, and it would be a shame to start outdo with such a blatantly dishonest and immoral course of action.

Set a good example for your daughter and urge her to repay the money. Hopefully the feedback that you’ve received here has knocked some sense into you both.

I fear it won’t though…
 
Did the bank mess up? Yes. Was the money hers to spend? No. Should she pay it back? Most definitely.

As someone suggested, if she has spent a big chunk of it, work out a repayment plan. But she really should pay back every cent and not tarnish her reputation, so early in her legal career. She would be doing herself an injustice and potentially ruining a future career. Stories like these tend to come back and haunt you later in life.
 
Free parenting advice too.

You do not know the full story or have seen the way the letter is worded.

Enjoy your wine folks.
 
This is just plain odd. What law are you expecting to find that your daughter doesn't have to pay it back??
By all means tell the bank that she won't be able to pay it back in one go and agree a payment plan. Least the bank can do for messing her about. But stop with the other stuff about trying to repay a fraction of what she owes. It's nonsense.
 
bmount said:
We cannot find any law or precedence on this at least online/google etc.
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Lots here:

Finders are not keepers. If money is just resting in your account, and even if you have no idea how it got there, you can’t keep it – you have to make restitution of the mistaken payment or run the risk of prosecution for theft – cearta.ie

www.cearta.ie www.cearta.ie
bmount said:
"Overpayment when you are no longer employed" is the key here
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Actually, it's not. The key here is simply the fact that money was mistakenly lodged to her account. The wider circumstances aren't really that relevant.

This also might give you/your daughter pause for thought...
although many such defendants receive suspended sentences, a teenager who spent almost €20,000 mistakenly lodged into his bank account by his former employer was convicted of theft, and sentenced to four years in prison with the final two years suspended.
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