Judicial panel begins hearing on judge

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MANITOBA, Manitoba, May 19 (UPI) -- The Canadian Judicial Council opened a hearing Saturday into alleged sexual harassment by a female judge in Manitoba.

Associate Chief Justice Lori Douglas of the Manitoba Court of Queen's Bench has temporarily given up her duties. A man who approached her husband in 2002 to represent him in a divorce case says that husband Jack King pressured him to have sex with Douglas.

Most of the council's work Saturday involved housekeeping matters, the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. reported. The council decided it would pay for a lawyer to represent the complainant, Alexander Chapman, who is seeking legal standing at the hearing.

Chapman said he had been turned down by several lawyers: "There's not a lawyer in this town that will touch this."

In 2002, King and Douglas were law partners. Chapman filed his complaint in 2010, saying King also showed him photographs of his wife, including some where she was chained naked or in bondage outfits.

The council includes five judges and two lawyers from as far away as Newfoundland. The hearing is being held in Winnipeg.