Texts Refute False Denial Of Sex With Client

A municipal judge who had sex with a divorce client has been disbarred by the Wyoming Supreme Court.

The judge had replaced the client’s first attorney. He did not have a written retainer but advised her that he would keep the fees down as she was a friend of his court clerk.

Within 10 days they had sex at his residence.

Over the next six months they exchanged “more than 11,000” text messages and GIF images. He quickly sent “sexually suggestive” texts and aggressively pursued the client. 

He actively encouraged her to delete the texts: “You do erase our texts, right?”

When she texted him “I’m a big chicken and scared of getting caught,” he responded “I know. We will be careful. Your phone is the most dangerous thing. Always keep it clean and we will be fine.”

The sexual relationship continued throughout the representation.

The husband filed the Bar complaint, to which the attorney responded by falsely denying the relationship.

A search warrant executed by the state Division of Criminal Investigation turned up the texts.

He admitted the violations and stipulated to the disposition, expressed “genuine remorse,” and “professed horror at his behavior in this matter.”

The Torrington Telegram reported on the sanction.

The investigators also found that Knudsen did not bill the Wife for legal services he rendered after May 29, 2018 – after the affair began. Knudsen did collect $1,430 for seven hours of work before the affair. After he stopped billing, Knudsen filed multiple motions on the case.

(Mike Frisch)