DISABILITY INACTIVE

The Tennessee Supreme Court transferred the law licenses of the following attorneys to disability inactive status. They may not practice law while on inactive status. They may seek reinstatement by showing by clear and convincing evidence that their disability has been removed and they are fit to resume the practice of law.

• Georgia attorney Robert Andrew Free, Nov. 1, 2022
• Knox County lawyer Stephen Wayne Gibson, Oct. 31, 2022

REINSTATED

The following lawyers were reinstated to the practice of law in Tennessee after being on inactive status for more than five years:

• Oklahoma lawyer Alecia Mariana Ingram, Nov. 7, 2022
• Washington, D.C., lawyer Jason Douglas Kane, Nov. 3, 2022
• North Carolina lawyer Carlin Victoria Peterson, Sept. 15, 2022

Davidson County lawyer Nathan Scott Moore was reinstated to the active practice of law with conditions on Oct. 28, 2022. On April 14, 2014, Moore was suspended by the Tennessee Supreme Court for two years, with three months to be served on active suspension and the remainder on probation. Moore filed a petition for reinstatement on Oct. 1, 2021. The court approved his reinstatement but conditioned it on engagement of a practice monitor for one year and compliance with any monitoring agreement recommended by the Tennessee Lawyer Assistance Program.

Reinstatement Request Referred to Hearing Panel

A petition for reinstatement filed by Knox County lawyer Keri Elizabeth Rule has been referred to a hearing panel of the Board of Professional Responsibility. The board asked for the referral for a hearing on the merits of the petition. The Tennessee Supreme Court agreed and ordered the referral on Nov. 15, 2022. Rule will bear the burden of proof to show by clear and convincing evidence that her disability has been removed and that she is no longer incapable of responding to or defending against pending disciplinary complaints. Her license had been transferred to disability status on April 20, 2022.

Reinstatement Request Denied

On Nov. 1, 2022, the Tennessee Supreme Court denied a reinstatement request from Georgia lawyer Khristie L. Kelly. She had petitioned for reinstatement on July 19, 2022. The Tennessee Commission on Continuing Legal Education opposed Kelly’s reinstatement based on her failure to pay fees and establish compliance with mandatory continuing legal education requirements for three compliance years. Kelly was advised twice that her petition would not be granted until outstanding obligations were resolved. The court reports that Kelly did not satisfy the obligations by the deadline.

DISCIPLINARY
Disbarred

Johnnie Louis Johnson III, now a resident of Kingsland, Ga., was disbarred by the Tennessee Supreme Court on Oct. 18, 2022. The court took the action after the District of Columbia Court of Appeals disbarred Johnson in May. The Tennessee court informed Johnson of the pending reciprocal discipline and requested a response within 30 days. Johnson did not respond by the deadline. After the disbarment was imposed, Johnson asked the court to allow him to retire on Jan. 1 without the imposition of discipline. The court rejected that request on Nov. 4, 2022.

Suspended

The Tennessee Supreme Court temporarily suspended Knox County lawyer Gary Lee Anderson from the practice of law on Nov. 17, 2022, after finding that he failed to respond to the Board of Professional Responsibility concerning two complaints of misconduct. Supreme Court Rule 9 provides for the immediate summary suspension of an attorney’s license to practice law in such cases. Anderson is immediately precluded from accepting any new cases and was to cease representing existing clients by Dec. 17, 2022.

The Tennessee Supreme Court on Nov. 22, 2022, suspended McMinn County lawyer Joseph H. Crabtree Jr. for three years, with one year to be served on active suspension and the remainder on probation. During the first year of probation, the court directed Crabtree to engage a practice monitor at his own expense. It also conditioned reinstatement on Crabtree completing six hours of continuing legal education on ethics and six hours on law office management, paying restitution to two former clients and reimbursing the Tennessee Lawyers Fund for Client Protection for any payments to complainants. The court took the action after finding that Crabtree’s conduct violated Tennessee Rules of Professional Conduct 1.1, 1.3, 1.4, 1.8 (h), 3.2, 3.4 (c), 8.1 (b) and 8.4 (a), (c) and (d).

Davidson County lawyer Dana L. Nero was suspended from the practice of law on Oct. 7, 2022. The Tennessee Supreme Court took the action after finding that Nero failed to respond to the Board of Professional Responsibility concerning a complaint of misconduct.

Censured

Davidson County lawyer Charles Martin Duke received a public censure from the Tennessee Supreme Court on Oct. 11, 2022. The court found that Duke violated Rules of Professional Conduct 1.3 and 1.4. While representing a client in probating an estate, a guardianship was created that required that realty within the estate be sold and the proceeds deposited with the court. Through an inadvertent error, the proceeds were deposited into a bank account maintained by the client. After becoming aware of the error, Duke failed to take proper action to facilitate the transfer of the funds to the court or to amend the guardianship. The court also found that Duke failed to maintain good communication with his client during the representation.

Davidson County lawyer Isaiah Skip Gant was censured by the Tennessee Supreme Court on Oct. 7, 2022. The court took the action based on Gant’s representation of a criminal defendant. Following the client’s conviction, Gant told lawyers representing another defendant charged with related crimes that their client was innocent. According to the court, this implied that Gant’s client was not innocent. Gant also had an ex parte meeting with the presiding judge and told the judge he believed the other defendant was innocent—all while a motion for new trial was pending for his client. The court found that Gant did not have his client’s permission to reveal this information, did not tell his client of the conversations and continued to represent the client. Finally, the court found that Gant did not report possible misconduct of another attorney to the Board of Professional Responsibility. His actions violated Rules of Professional Conduct 1.4, 1.6, 1.7, 3.5, 8.3 and 8.4.

Anderson County attorney Joe Richard Judkins was censured by the Tennessee Supreme Court on Nov. 15, 2022. Following a disagreement with a client, Judkins refused to immediately transfer the client file to his client’s new counsel and asserted a valid attorney’s lien in the litigation and over the file materials. Additionally, Judkins failed to adequately communicate with his client until representation ended about fees to be paid, updates on the accrual of fees and total amount of fees owed. Finally, in an effort to defend his valid attorney’s lien for fees, Judkins received permission from the court to intervene in the litigation but attempted to participate in the litigation beyond the extent the court deemed necessary.

Knox County lawyer Herbert Sanford Moncier was censured by the Tennessee Supreme Court on Oct. 31, 2022. The court found that he violated Rules of Professional Conduct 1.2(a), 1.3, 1.7, 1.9, 3.1, 3.4(c) and 8.4(g) while pursuing a qui tam suit filed in state court. Moncier initially named a former client as a defendant in the action, but then voluntarily withdrew the complaint. The court found that he acted as his own attorney and had a personal interest in the case. The court ordered Moncier to retain successor counsel for the action, which he did not do.

Roane County lawyer Christopher Shawn Roberts was censured by the Tennessee Supreme Court on Oct. 13, 2022. Roberts failed to take proper action and failed to expedite litigation concerning the foreclosure of a client’s home. Additionally, Roberts did not respond to inquiries from his client concerning the foreclosure, failed to keep his clients updated on the status of the bankruptcy proceeding, effectively abandoned the representation and failed to withdraw from the representation.

Reprimand

Hamilton County lawyer Justin Grey Woodward was reprimanded by the Tennessee Supreme Court on Nov. 30, 2022. The court said that it took the action based on a reprimand imposed by the Supreme Court of Georgia. Woodward was reprimanded by the Georgia court on Jan. 19, 2022, for conduct involving three separate matters. According to the court, Woodward sought the discipline before the issuance of a formal complaint. The Tennessee court reports that it notified Woodward of the pending reciprocal discipline but received no response.

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. |||