The Illinois Administrator has filed a complaint alleging that an attorney had failed to complete legal services as he was retained to perform

On July 26, 2024, K.G. sent a letter to Respondent’s law firm via regular mail. In her letter, K.G. asked Respondent to refund the $2,500 retainer that she provided to him because he had not performed any of the legal work that he had agreed to do, and told Respondent that she had collected D.G.’s pension and company stock from his employer, but had been unable to collect the death benefit from D.G.’s life insurance policy or transfer title of the stock certificates that D.G. had inherited from his mother. K.G. also told Respondent that she had met with another attorney about performing the legal work that Respondent had agreed to perform on her behalf and paid the attorney $600. Respondent did not respond to K.G.’s July 26, 2024 letter.

On August 2, 2024, K.G. sent a second copy of her July 26, 2024 letter described in paragraph 12, above, to Respondent’s law firm by regular mail. Respondent did not respond to K.G.’s August 2, 2024 letter.

On or about March 14, 2025, Respondent sent a check in the amount of $2,500 to K.G.

Among the allegations are

failing to refund an unearned fee, by conduct including failing to return the $2,500 that Respondent received from
K.G. in connection with his representation of K.G., in violation of Rule 1.16(d) of the Illinois Rules of Professional Conduct (2010); and

engaging in conduct involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit, or misrepresentation, by conduct including making the false
statement to K.G. that Respondent would prepare the necessary documents to collect D.G.’s pension and the death benefits from D.G.’s life insurance policy, and transfer title of the stock certificates that D.G. had inherited from his mother to K.G., prepare a quit claim deed for the marital home, and establish the living trust by Thanksgiving, in violation of Rule 8.4(c) of the Illinois Rules of Professional Conduct (2010).

Failure to cooperate charge

On March 14, 2025, Respondent sent an email to counsel for the Administrator that included a two-page written response to K.G.’s allegations. In his response, Respondent stated that his delay in responding was due to his recent hospitalizations and requested that the sworn statement scheduled for March 18, 2025 be continued because Respondent had planned to attend his son’s collegiate golf tournament in Springfield, Missouri on March 14, 2025, and was unable to cancel his flight. Counsel for the Administrator agreed to continue the sworn statement for March 27, 2025.

On March 27, 2025, Respondent appeared remotely from Florida for the sworn statement. During the sworn statement, Respondent testified that he had not timely filed a response to the Administrator’s requests for information because he had been hospitalized in late 2024 and early 2025 for various medical issues and, as a result, his mobility was limited, but he had driven to Florida from Illinois while also attending another of his son’s golf tournaments in Alabama. Respondent also testified that the building in which his law firm was located had a water infiltration incident and, as a result, his file room suffered significant water damage. Respondent testified that he lost K.G.’s file when he was removing the water-damaged files from the room. At the conclusion of the sworn statement, counsel for the Administrator asked Respondent to provide a copy of K.G.’s file, documentation of the purported water infiltration incident, and copies of medical records regarding Respondent’s purported hospitalizations