The Wrong Bailey

A Louisiana Hearing Board has recommended disbarment of an attorney in a case that was “very involved and read[s] like a Greek tragedy.”

The client had a $1.5 million trust set up as a result of a serious accident. His “pride and injuries cause[d] him to engage in a destructive course…” and led him to retain the attorney to break the trust. The attorney charged excessive fees and engaged in a conflict of interest by having his own wife appointed as trustee. As a result, the client died destitute.

Both the attorney who represented the client in setting up the trust and the one who engaged in the conduct that led to the proposed sanction had the last name of Bailey. They are not related. (Mike Frisch)