In The Mail

The Indiana Supreme Court has imposed a public reprimand on stipulated facts

“Client” hired Respondent to represent him in an immigration matter. In March 2018, Client and Respondent executed a waiver form set to expire in July 2018, and Client provided Respondent three MoneyGram orders to pay the fees associated with filing the waiver form. MoneyGram orders incur monthly service charges beginning one year after the date of purchase.

Respondent took no action to confirm the waiver form and money orders were received by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) office. For whatever reason, Respondent’s mailing to the USCIS office was unsuccessful, and the United States Postal Service returned the undelivered mailing to Respondent in June 2020. In July 2020, Respondent re-sent the waiver form and MoneyGram orders to USCIS, without telling Client. In August 2020, USCIS issued a notice rejecting the waiver form as outdated and because the MoneyGram orders had expired. Respondent’s next documented attempt to communicate with Client was a letter sent in November 2020 asking Client to contact her. In March 2021, Respondent contacted Client seeking to collect an outstanding fee balance.

(Mike Frisch)