Bad Brother

A disciplinary summary from the web page of the Massachusetts Board of Bar Overseers

The respondent’s conviction was based on the following facts. The respondent was appointed by the Veterans Affairs Administration in the late 1990s to be a fiduciary and to
administer VA benefits for his brother-in-law, a veteran suffering from a mental disability. The respondent received his brother-in-law’s VA benefit payments and paid authorized expenses. At some points between October of 2008 and September of 2011, the respondent also misappropriated some of his brother-in-law’s funds to pay his own personal and family expenses totaling approximately $137,493. When asked by the VA to provide an accounting for the time period during which he had misappropriated funds, the respondent initially falsely claimed that he had earned legal fees in representing his brother-in-law in various matters. He later admitted his misappropriations in a voluntary statement to VA agents.

After conviction

The respondent admitted the charges set forth in the petition and did not request an opportunity to be heard in mitigation. On April 9, 2018, the board voted to recommend that the respondent be disbarred, retroactive to June 1, 2016, the date the respondent was temporarily suspended pending further disciplinary proceedings.