Thy Sister’s Lawyer

A stayed one-year suspension was imposed by the Ohio Supreme Court for misconduct in an attorney’s representation of her sister.

The attorney had limited her practice to court-appointed criminal work and had no trust account.

She represented her sister and the sister’s husband in a foreclosure action. The misconduct involved misappropriation of entrusted funds.

The court found significant mitigation  (and little danger of future misconduct) in the family circumstances.

As the attorney explained

it was difficult for her to differentiate between her horrible familial relationship with her sister and her role as her sister’s attorney.

The court

The board [of Commissioners on Grievances and Discipline]…considered [the attorney’s] uncontroverted deposition and hearing testimony regarding her tumultuous and contentious relationship with her sister. The board noted [her] testimony that once she became a practicing attorney, her older sister expected her to provide legal services for whatever she wanted and whenever she wanted them. Whether it was a speeding ticket or a foreclosure, her sister expected her to drop everything, no matter what was going on in her own life, and fix everything. [She] felt that she could not refuse her sister’s demands because if she did, her sister would call and complain and harass her or their mother and “cause a big family fight and big family drama.” She reported that it had “always been this way” and that it was easier to give in to her sister’s demands than to fight. {she] also testified that while the foreclosure was pending, she also served as the attorney for her grandmother’s estate—which created intense disagreements between the sisters, who were both beneficiaries of the estate.

While the misconduct normally would call for a severe sanction

[The attorney] testified, and the board found, that she and her sister have always had a contentious relationship and that since she obtained her law license, her sister—and her mother—have expected her to drop everything to handle her sister’s legal crises with no reimbursement for her time or the expenses she incurs on her sister’s behalf. She indicated that it was easier to go along with her sister’s demands than to fight them and cause “a big family fight and big family drama.” However, she reports that she has learned her lesson about handling legal matters for her family and that it will never happen again.

(Mike Frisch)