A Vancouver realtor has had her license suspended after forging the signature of her mom’s deceased boyfriend in a Richmond condo sale.
According to a consent order released by the BC Financial Services Authority (BCFSA), Renee Genieve Doe Wei Lam, also known as Genie Lam, admitted that she “falsified the signature” of her mom’s deceased boyfriend, who was identified as HL, in a September 8, 2016 assignment agreement.
The agreement was to transfer a Richmond property, which was bought by HL, to Lam’s mother, who was identified as CL.
Lam signed the agreement in HL’s name after he died on Aug. 26, 2016.
The BCFSA document stated that HL “was feeling sick” while at CL’s residence on Aug. 26, 2016, but “refused to go to the hospital because he was worried his family would discover the relationship with CL.”
The document further mentioned that he had “laid down for a nap and did not wake up.”
Emergency services staff were at CL’s residence when Lam had arrived.
“Ms. Lam describes HL’s death as traumatizing to both her and CL, and that she was emotionally distraught at the time due to the circumstances of her arriving at CL’s property and her close relationship with HL,” read Lam’s consent order.
HL “gifted” a cheque with the amount $320,000 to CL two days before he died with Lam citing that the money was “for the purpose of completing the purchase of the Property.”
Lam said that HL contacted her in April 2016 to assign the agreement to CL and to prepare a document for the property transfer, which was done by both HL and CL. However, Lam said she had “lost” the copy of the agreement.
“Ms. Lam says she was distraught and concerned with protecting both HL and CL’s desire to keep their relationship secret, and HL’s desire that CL own the Property, and therefore Ms. Lam emailed the Developer to obtain a new assignment agreement which she completed,” the document also noted.
Lam not only forged HL’s signature in the September 2016 assignment, she also “falsely represented” that she was a dual agent of HL and CL stating that “HL was her uncle and CL was her aunt.”
The document stated that Lam “falsely represented to the agent for the Developer that HL (then deceased) was out of town, when she knew that HL was deceased.”
In October 2016, HL’s estate filed a civil suit against Lam’s mother, CL, when money was received for the Richmond condo purchase after the man’s death.
Lam was added as a defendant in the civil suit in 2018.
Both parties came to a “confidential settlement agreement” on Aug. 23, 2019 and the property still remained in CL’s name.
Lam and her firm, Genie Lam Personal Real Estate Corporation, were each ordered to have their licenses suspended for three months starting Jan. 1, 2022 and are prohibited from acting as an unlicensed assistant during their suspension.
The agent was ordered to also pay a penalty fee of $7,500, and enforcement expenses of $1,500 to BCFSA.
Lam will also need to complete two Real Estate Institute of Canada courses: Legal Issues in Real Estate and Ethics in Business Practice under the direction of the BCFSA.
