Disciplinary
Actions Taken by the
Virginia State Bar
January
22, 1999 - June 1999
June
22, 1999
Gary
Alan Howard, 9255 Lee Avenue, Manassas, VA 20110-5591.
VSB
Docket Nos. 97-052-1622, 98-052-0574, and 98-052-2101
Gary
Alan Howard petitioned the Virginia State Bar Disciplinary
Board to surrender his license to practice law in
Virginia with disciplinary charges pending on June
21, 1999. The board accepted the petition and revoked
his license on June 22, 1999. Summaries of the charges
will be forwarded to the Virginia Supreme Court.
June
22, 1999
Alan
Jay Cilman, Suite PH-15, 10560 Main Street, Fairfax,
VA 22030.
VSB
Docket Nos. 94-042-0079 and 94-042-0265
On
May 20, 1999, the Virginia Supreme Court dismissed
an appeal noted by Alan Jay Cilman. Mr. Cilman had
noted an appeal of the decision of the Virginia
State Bar Disciplinary Board to suspend his license
to practice law for a period of two years for Mr.
Cilmans failure to comply with the terms imposed
by the Disciplinary Board in a previous order stemming
from two misconduct cases. Mr. Cilmans appeal
was dismissed due to his failure to prosecute the
appeal. The suspension of Mr. Cilmans license
to practice law has been in effect since July 29,
1998.
June
11, 1999
William
Andrew Kennedy, Executive Plaza, Suite 315, 510
Cumberland Street, Bristol, VA 24201
William
Andrew Kennedy petitioned the Virginia State Bar
Disciplinary Board to surrender his license to practice
law in Virginia with disciplinary charges pending
on June 10, 1999. The board accepted the petition
and revoked his license on June 11, 1999. Summaries
of the charges will be forwarded to the Virginia
Supreme Court.
May
26, 1999
Francis
Anderson Porter, P.O. Box 2576, Midlothian, VA 23113
Francis
Anderson Porter petitioned the Virginia State Bar
Disciplinary Board to surrender his license to practice
law in Virginia with disciplinary charges pending
on May 26, 1999. The board accepted the petition
and revoked his license on May 26, 1999. Summaries
of the charges will be forwarded to the Virginia
Supreme Court.
May
25, 1999
David
Duncan Reynolds, Novak, Druce, Reynolds & Burt,
Suite 200, 12 South Lexington Street, Arlington,
VA 22204
David
Duncan Reynolds petitioned the Virginia State Bar
Disciplinary Board to surrender his license to practice
law in Virginia with disciplinary charges pending
on May 25, 1999. The board accepted the petition
and revoked his license on May 26, 1999. Summaries
of the charges will be forwarded to the Virginia
Supreme Court.
May
17, 1999
Paul
Cornelious Bland, P.O. Box 402, Petersburg, VA 23804-0402
VSB
Docket No. 97-031-2968
A
summary of the Agreed Disposition and Subcommittee
Determination (Public Reprimand with Terms) is as
follows: Mr. Bland was retained by an heir to represent
her interests in pending litigation over the sale
of real property owned by an estate. During the
course of his representation of the heir, Mr. Bland
incorrectly stated in a number of different pleadings
that he filed that he was representing other individuals
(heirs), as well. In fact, many, if not all, of
the other heirs had not retained Mr. Bland, contrary
to his representations. In addition, the Commissioner
in Chancery, who was appointed to conduct the judicial
sale of the estate's real property, subsequently
sent Mr. Bland checks which constituted the proceeds
from the sale of the estate's real property for
seven of the other heirs. The Commissioner asked
Mr. Bland to distribute the checks to the seven
other heirs. Mr. Bland disregarded the Commissioner's
instructions and sent the checks to his client,
instead. Mr. Bland's client held onto the checks
for months before she finally released the seven
checks to one of the other heirs. One of the seven
other heirs never did receive her check and the
Commissioner ultimately had to arrange for the clerk
of the circuit court to stop payment on the old
check and issue her a new check. Mr. Bland stipulated
that he had violated DR's 6-101(A) and 9-102(B)(4).
May
17, 1999
Paul
Cornelious Bland, P.O. Box 402, Petersburg, VA 23804-0402
VSB
Docket No. 98-031-2677
A
summary of the Agreed Disposition and Subcommittee
Determination (Public Reprimand with Terms) is as
follows: Mr. Bland neglected to represent a client
in a prompt or diligent manner in a partition suit
that he had filed on behalf of the client. Moreover,
the client had paid Mr. Bland a flat fee of $300
to handle the partition suit. Mr. Bland failed to
deposit said flat fee into his trust account and
also failed to maintain a trust account subsidiary
ledger for the client. Mr. Bland stipulated that
he had violated DRs 6-101(B), 9-102(A)(1)
and (2), and 9-103(A)(3).
April
28, 1999
Alan
Jay Cilman, Suite PH-15, 10560 Main Street, Fairfax,
VA 22030.
Alan
Jay Cilman's license to practice law was suspended
by a three-judge panel of the Circuit Court for
Fairfax County for one year to be served consecutively
with a two year suspension ordered in another disciplinary
matter, which was effective July 29, 1998. The panel
found that Mr. Cilman engaged in misconduct by making
misrepresentations to his client about the status
of the case, by having an improper fee agreement,
by improperly terminating his representation and
by failing to properly preserve the funds of a client.
April
23, 1999
Marlow
Webster Cook, Jr., 2217 Fordham Drive, Alexandria,
Virginia 22307.
Marlow
Webster Cook, Jr. entered into an Agreed disposition
on March 6, 1997, with the Virginia State Bar in
which he admitted violating DR 1-102(A)(4) and DR
9-102 by failing to turn over client funds to his
law firm. The sanction was a 9-month suspension
of Mr. Cooks license to practice law with
a term imposed of completing 8 hours of ethics continuing
legal education.
The
Board today voted to impose the alternative disposition
of a 2-year suspension to commence April 23, 1999
on the basis of the respondents failure to
comply with Rules of the Virginia Supreme Court,
Part 6, Section IV, Paragraph 13.K.(1) (notification
to clients of an attorneys suspension or disbarment)
and the term imposed by the Agreed Disposition of
completing 8 continuing legal education hours in
ethics within the original 9-month suspension.
April
23, 1999
Evans
Butler Jessee, P.O. Box 1369, Roanoke, Virginia
24004-1369.
Evans
Butler Jessee petitioned the Virginia State Bar
Disciplinary Board to surrender his license to practice
law in Virginia with disciplinary charges pending
on April 22, 1999. The board accepted the petition
and revoked his license on April 23, 1999. Mr. Jessees
address is P.O. Box 1369, Roanoke, Virginia 24004-1369.
Summaries of the charges will be forwarded to the
Virginia Supreme Court.
April
21, 1999
Donald
Edward Earls, 936 Park Avenue, P.O. Box 710, Norton,
Virginia 24273
On
March 18, 1999, the Tenth, Section II District Committee
held a hearing and found that Donald Edward Earls
violated DR 6-101(B) by failing to attend promptly
to a matter undertaken for a client and DR 7-102(A)(2)
by knowingly advancing a claim that was unwarranted
under existing law. The Tenth, Section II District
Committee imposed a Public Reprimand on Mr. Earls.
April
20, 1999
Saad
El-Amin, El-Amin & Crawford, P.C., 4221 Chamberlayne
Avenue, Richmond, Virginia 23227
On
April 16, 1999, the Virginia Supreme Court issued
its opinion in Saad El-Amin v. Virginia State
Bar, ex rel. Third District Committee,
Record No. 981994, affirming a four-year suspension
of Mr. El-Amins license to practice law in
the Commonwealth of Virginia imposed by the Circuit
of the City of Richmond. The time periods have not
expired within which Mr. El-Amin may seek a rehearing
or appeal the decision.
April
8, 1999
Bruce
Charles Britton, 2219 Glencourse Lane, Reston, Virginia
22091
On
April 2, 1999, upon the recommendation of the Virginia
State Bar Disciplinary Board, the Virginia Supreme
Court denied Bruce Charles Britton's petition for
reinstatement to the practice of law in the Commonwealth
of Virginia.
The
Disciplinary Board initially suspended Britton's
license to practice law in 1989 for misconduct relating
to issues of honesty and integrity. After suspension,
Britton continued to practice law because, in his
words, "he thought he could get away with it."
As a consequence, the Circuit Court of Fairfax County
revoked Britton's license in 1991.
The
Board entertained the petition for reinstatement
filed by Britton at a hearing on May 22, 1998. After
hearing evidence and argument, the Board unanimously
recommended to the Supreme Court of Virginia that
the petition be denied. One character witness called
by Britton indicated that Britton advised him, not
that Britton's license was revoked due to ethical
misconduct, but merely that Britton had allowed
his license to lapse.
The
record of the hearing before the Disciplinary Board
and the Disciplinary Board's recommendation that
the petition be denied was submitted to the Virginia
Supreme Court for final decision.
April
8, 1999
Bruce
Wilson McLaughlin, Post Office Box 6211, Leesburg,
Virginia 20178
The
Virginia State Bar Disciplinary Board has suspended
Bruce Wilson McLaughlin's license to practice law
in the Commonwealth of Virginia, effective April
8, 1999. A hearing will be held before the Disciplinary
Board on April 23, 1999, to show cause why Mr. McLaughlin's
license should not be further suspended or revoked.
The
interim suspension is predicated upon an Order of
the Circuit Court of Loudoun County, entered on
February 8, 1999, upon a jury verdict finding Mr.
McLaughlin guilty of criminal misconduct of a sexual
nature.
March
26, 1999
Steven Ray Want, 1125 Hans Meadow Road, Christiansburg,
Virginia 24073-2302
Steven
Ray Want's license to practice law in the Commonwealth
of Virginia was revoked effective March 26, 1999,
by the Virginia State Bar Disciplinary Board.
This
complaint arose during court proceedings which commenced
in 1994 surrounding controversies over the purchase
of a Corvette automobile. Want admits not proceeding
with the case in a timely fashion. Want does not
contest that he misrepresented the status of the
case to his client. He further misrepresented there
were settlement negotiations and misrepresented
that there was a settlement offer from the defendant
when, in fact, there had been none. Want used his
own funds, tendering them to his client purporting
that they were settlement proceeds. The "settlement"
checks were altered after the filing of the bar
complaint to reflect that they were loan proceeds,
a fact adamantly denied by his client. After having
urged his client to accept the fictitious offer
while suggesting the defendant was going to file
a bankruptcy, Want dismissed the client's case.
Want thereafter misled Judge Pattisall on the day
of trial that the case had been settled.
March
24, 1999
Jay
Kenneth Wilk, Post Office Box 428, Woodstock, Virginia
22664.
On
November 13, 1998, the Disciplinary Board held a
hearing to consider an Agreed Disposition of misconduct
charges brought against Jay Kenneth Wilk. The charges
arose from Mr. Wilk accepting payment from a third
party for legal fees in a criminal proceeding in
which Mr. Wilk served as court appointed counsel.
By order entered on March 24, 1999, the Disciplinary
Board accepted the Agreed Disposition, which imposes
a Public Reprimand with Terms. If Mr. Wilk does
not comply with the terms, the Agreed Disposition
provides an alternate sanction of a three month
suspension.
March
3, 1999
Allen
Joseph Gordon, 1553 South Military Highway, P.O.
Box 1756, Chesapeake, VA 23327-1756
The
Virginia State Bar First District Committee found
that Allen Joseph Gordon violated DR 6-101 (C) and
(D) in that he failed to adequately communicate
with his client and DR 7-102(A)(2) in that he advanced
a claim or defense that was unwarranted under existing
law. The First District Committee issued a Public
Reprimand with Terms.
March
1, 1999
Daniel
Wood Aldredge, 10121 Dawndeer Lane, Richmond, VA
23233
On
February 26, 1999, Daniel Wood Aldredge came before
the Disciplinary Board on the Virginia State Bars
Petition to Show Cause as to why the alternative
disposition of an additional one-year suspension
incorporated in an August 23, 1996 Order of the
Board should not be imposed. The respondent did
not show by clear and convincing evidence that he
had complied with the terms imposed in the August
23, 1996 Order, so the board imposed the alternative
sanction of extending the suspension of his license
until July 20, 1999.
February
25, 1999
Stephen Hayden Mims, 767 Madison
Road, Suite 115, Culpeper, VA 22071
Stephen Hayden Mims petitioned the Virginia
State Bar Disciplinary Board to surrender his license
to practice law in Virginia with disciplinary charges
pending on February 24, 1999. The board accepted
the petition and revoked his license on February
25, 1999. Mr. Mims' address is 767 Madison Road,
Suite 115, Culpeper, VA 22071. Summaries of the
charges will be forwarded to the Virginia Supreme
Court.
February
12, 1999
Walter
Franklin Green, IV, 77 North Liberty Street, P.O.
Box 512, Harrisonburg, VA 22801-0512
In
the Matter of Walter Franklin Green, IV, Esq., VSB
Docket No. 97-070-2583, the Virginia State Bar Disciplinary
Board, on January 28, 1999, found that Mr. Green
violated DR 7-105, which provides that a lawyer,
in his professional capacity before a tribunal,
shall not intentionally violate any established
rule of procedure, where such conduct is disruptive
of the proceedings. The Board issued a public reprimand
as the sanction.
February
8, 1999
Donald
Malcolm Glenn, 12257 South Anna Drive, Rockville,
Virginia, 23146
Donald
Malcolm Glenn petitioned the Virginia State Bar
Disciplinary Board to surrender his license to practice
law in Virginia with disciplinary charges pending
on February 5, 1999. The board accepted the petition
and revoked his license on February 8, 1999. Mr.
Glenns address is 12257 South Anna Drive,
Rockville, Virginia 23146. Summaries of the charges
will be forwarded to the Virginia Supreme Court.
January
22, 1999
Donald
Brock Matthews, 2301 Hicks Road, Richmond, Virginia
23235-5418
Donald
Brock Matthews petitioned the Virginia State Bar
Disciplinary Board to surrender his license to practice
law in Virginia with disciplinary charges pending
on January 21, 1999. The board accepted the petition
and revoked his license on January 22, 1999. Mr.
Matthews address is 2301 Hicks Road, Richmond,
Virginia 23235-5418. Summaries of the charges will
be forwarded to the Virginia Supreme Court.
January
22, 1999
Dennis
Eugene Jones, Dennis E. Jones & Assoc., P.C.,
P.O. Box 1237, Lebanon, VA 24266-1237
Dennis
Eugene Jones was alleged to have misappropriated
clients funds for his own use. The Virginia
State Bar Disciplinary Board found that the evidence
supported a finding of a violation of Disciplinary
Rule 1-102.(A)(3) , based upon an improper transfer
and commingling of client funds with firm funds.
No actual loss of client funds occurred. On January
22, 1999, the board imposed a 60-day suspension
of Mr. Jones license effective January 29,
1999. Mr. Jones address is Dennis E. Jones
& Assoc., P.C., P.O. Box 1237, Lebanon, VA 24266-1237.
January
22, 1999
George
E. Talbot, Jr., Suite 408, High and Crawford Streets,
P.O. Box 1203, Portsmouth, Virginia 23705-1203
On
January 19, 1999, a panel of the Virginia State
Bar Disciplinary Board accepted an Agreed Disposition
between the Virginia State Bar and Portsmouth attorney
George E. Talbot, Jr. In accordance with the agreement,
Mr. Talbot will receive a Public Reprimand with
Terms. If Mr. Talbot fails to comply with either
of the terms, his license to practice law in Virginia
will be suspended for a period of twelve months.
In accordance with the stipulations, the Board found
that Mr. Talbot repeatedly failed to file estate
accountings while serving as executor, in violation
of DR 6-101(B), which requires a lawyer to attend
promptly to matters undertaken for a client. Mr.
Talbots address is Suite 408, High and Crawford
Streets, P.O. Box 1203, Portsmouth, Virginia 23705-1203.