DISABILITY INACTIVE

The Tennessee Supreme Court recently issued orders transferring the law licenses of the following lawyers to disability inactive status. These lawyers may not practice law while on inactive status but may petition the court for reinstatement upon showing that their disability has been removed.

• Williamson County lawyer Jay Nelson Chamness, Feb. 23
• Blount County lawyer Charles David Deas, March 18
• Hardeman County lawyer Karen Tucker Fleet, Feb. 23
• Hamilton County lawyer William Robert Heck, March 30
• Wilson County lawyer Ruth Raber Murphy, Feb. 23
• Madison County lawyer Charles Michael Purcell, Feb. 23

REINSTATED

The following lawyers were reinstated to the practice of law after being moved to inactive status more than five years ago:

• Williamson County lawyer Kathryn Goff Brinton, March 7
• Hamilton County lawyer Katherine Teresa Farrar, Feb. 14
• Georgia lawyer Allison S. Hines Ficken, Feb. 8
• Ohio lawyer Daniel Michael Spirko, Feb. 4

Shelby County lawyer Mariann Tait Barksdale was reinstated to the practice of law on Jan. 24. The Tennessee Supreme Court filed the reinstatement order on Feb. 9 saying that Barksdale had demonstrated that the required reinstatement fee and all delinquent annual registration fees had been paid to the Board of Professional Responsibility.

Knox County lawyer Grace Ingrid Gardiner was reinstated to the practice of law on Feb. 14. She had been suspended in August 2021 for three years, with four months to be served on active suspension and the remainder on probation. Gardiner filed a petition for reinstatement, which the Tennessee Supreme Court deemed satisfactory so long as Gardiner complies with the terms and conditions of her probation. Under the court’s order, Gardiner must not practice law in any bankruptcy court until she engages a practice monitor who will review basic bankruptcy procedures and submit monthly written progress reports to the Board of Professional Responsibility. Gardiner also must not incur any new complaints of misconduct related to the conduct that led to her suspension.

DENIAL OF PETITIONS

On Feb. 15, the Tennessee Supreme Court rejected a conditional guilty plea and disciplinary action proposed by the Board of Professional Responsibility against Williamson County lawyer Melissa Ann Baker. A petition for discipline was filed against Baker on May 22, 2020. She agreed to a conditional guilty plea on Nov. 18, 2021. After reviewing the entire record in the matter, the court said it had concerns “that the recommended punishment, particularly the period of active suspension, is too lenient.” The court rejected the plea and referred the matter back to the board for further proceedings.

On Feb. 23, the Tennessee Supreme Court dismissed a reinstatement petition from Texas lawyer Daniel S. Edmunds Jr. Edmunds filed the petition on Oct. 4, 2021. The Tennessee Commission on Continuing Legal Education opposed the petition based on Edmunds’s failure to pay certain fees and penalties and comply with CLE requirements in 2019, 2020 and 2021. The Board of Professional Responsibility also opposed to the petition based on Edmunds’s failure to pay the required reinstatement fee. Due to these outstanding issues, the court dismissed the petition.

DISCIPLINARY
Disbarred

Williamson County lawyer Wendell J. O’Reilly was permanently disbarred by the Tennessee Supreme Court on March 3 and ordered to pay restitution to two clients in the amounts of $4,500 and $6,600. The court determined that O’Reilly, while suspended from the practice of law for CLE violations and failure to pay the professional privilege tax, knowingly engaged in the unauthorized practice of law; misled courts, clients and third parties; charged excessive fees; and failed to comply with final court orders. The court also found that he failed to adequately communicate with his clients, safeguard client funds and respond to the Board of Professional Responsibility about a disciplinary matter. He also was found to have engaged in conduct prejudicial to the administration of justice. His actions and omissions were determined to violate Rules of Professional Conduct 1.4, 1.5, 1.15, 3.3, 4.1, 5.5, 8.1 and 8.4(a), (c), (d) and (g).

Suspended

On March 24, the Tennessee Supreme Court suspended Shelby County lawyer John Louis Dolan from the practice of law for one year, with 30 days to be served on active suspension and the remaining 11 months on probation under the supervision of a practice monitor. The Board of Professional Responsibility found that Dolan failed to reasonably respond to his client’s request for information about the status of his criminal case and failed to diligently represent his client over a period of approximately two years. In a second matter, the board found that Dolan failed to properly communicate with his client and failed to submit various pleadings. Dolan agreed to a conditional guilty plea admitting his conduct violated Rules of Professional Conduct 1.3, 1.4, 3.4 and 8.4 (a).

Shelby County lawyer A. Sais Phillips Finney was suspended from the practice of law on March 14 after the Tennessee Supreme Court found that she failed to respond to the Board of Professional Responsibility concerning two complaints of misconduct. The court also determined that Finney posed a risk of substantial harm to the public. The suspension took effect immediately and remains in force until modified or dissolved by the court.

On March 3, the Tennessee Supreme Court suspended North Carolina lawyer Sir Ashley James Harrison from the practice of law for five years, retroactive to Dec. 8, 2015. The court took the reciprocal action after the North Carolina State Bar suspended Harrison for five years. Harrison must comply with Sections 28 and 30.4 of Tennessee Supreme Court Rule 9 regarding the obligations and responsibilities of suspended attorneys and must pay the costs and expenses of the proceeding prior to any reinstatement.

The Tennessee Supreme Court suspended Shelby County lawyer Thomas Francis Jackson III from the practice of law for one year on Feb. 9 after finding that he knowingly and repeatedly communicated with opposing parties through their agents about the substance of the litigation without the consent of the attorneys representing the defendants, and that he continued to do so after being instructed to communicate only with opposing counsel. The panel also found that, after being suspended from practicing law, Jackson advertised his professional services on the internet, met with a potential client about representation, sought to collect fees for professional services for which he had not been retained, and failed to disclose his suspension. His actions were found to violate Rules of Professional Conduct 4.2(a) and 5.5(a).

On March 3, the Tennessee Supreme Court suspended Janet Monique Okoye from the practice of law after finding that she failed to respond to the Board of Professional Responsibility concerning three complaints of misconduct. Section 12.3 of Supreme Court Rule 9 provides for the immediate summary suspension of an attorney’s license for failure to respond to a complaint of misconduct. The suspension remains in effect until dissolution or modification by the court.

On March 25, the Tennessee Supreme Court suspended John Ryan Poole from the practice of law for six years, with four years to be served on active suspension and the remaining two years on probation with the appointment of a practice monitor. The Board of Professional Responsibility filed seven complaints alleging that Poole failed to reasonably communicate with clients regarding the status of their cases, failed to act in a diligent manner and expedite clients’ litigation, failed to comply with court orders, failed to protect client funds, failed to provide proper notice following temporary suspension, and failed to reply to lawful demands for information from the disciplinary counsel. Poole agreed to a conditional guilty plea acknowledging his conduct violated Tennessee Rules of Professional Conduct 1.3, 1.4, 1.5, 1.15, 1.16, 3.2, 3.4, 8.1 and 8.4(a).

Knox County lawyer Brian Chadwick Rickman was suspended from the practice of law for one year by the Tennessee Supreme Court on March 28. The court took the action after finding that during litigation of a contentious child custody matter, Rickman “intentionally and knowingly engaged in abusive and obstreperous conduct intended to disrupt the proceedings of the tribunal and continued this unethical behavior despite multiple warnings from the court.” The court also found that Rickman made statements in open court and in pleadings that were knowingly false or made with reckless disregard to the truth, impugning the integrity and reputation of the presiding judge. His actions were determined to violate Rules of Professional Conduct 3.5(e), 8.2(a)(1) and 8.4(a) and (d).

On Feb. 3, the Tennessee Supreme Court suspended Jody Rodenborn Troutman from the practice of law for four years, with one year to be served on active suspension and the remainder on probation. The court conditioned the probation on compliance with any monitoring agreement recommended by the Tennessee Lawyers Assistance Program and the requirement that Troutman incur no new complaints of misconduct related to the violations that led to this suspension. Troutman entered a conditional guilty plea acknowledging that her theft of property, driving under the influence convictions and appearance in court while under the influence violated Tennessee Rules of Professional Conduct 1.3 and 8.4(b) and (d).

Censured

The Board of Professional Responsibility issued a public censure to Anderson County lawyer Brian Jamie Hunt on March 21. After taking military inactive status in 2012, Hunt failed to apply for reinstatement and failed to pay attorney registration fees when he returned to private practice. He also practiced law while his license status was still inactive in violation of Rule of Professional Conduct 5.5.

Madison County lawyer Jack Colin Morris received a censure from the Tennessee Supreme Court on March 14. The court found that in representing a client in a detainer action, Morris did not appear at a hearing, resulting in the case being dismissed. The court did find, however, that Morris made a timely and good faith effort to rectify the consequences of his misconduct. His actions were determined to violate Rules of Professional Conduct 1.3 and 8.4(a) and (d).

Administrative Suspensions

Notice of attorneys suspended for, and reinstated from, administrative violations – including failure to pay the Board of Professional Responsibility licensing and inactive fees, file the required IOLTA report, comply with continuing legal education requirements, and pay the Tennessee professional privilege tax – is on the TBA website at www.tba.org/administrative_suspensions. |||