Wicked Estate Lawyer Relinquishes Law License

The State Bar of Texas announced yesterday (May 4, 2007) that a Texas lawyer whoin one case failed to properly disburse assets to people named in a will and commingled assets with his own money. He also failed to account for how he distributed the money and property, despite a court order.

In another case, the bar association said, [the lawyer] withdrew money from an estate and deposited it in his own bank account.

"The funds were then spent or otherwise exhausted by [the lawyer] and not utilized for the benefit of the estate," the association said.

[The lawyer] and his family also lived in the home of a deceased client from 1987 to 2002 and deposited money from the sale into his own bank account, the bar said.

See Tony Plohetski, Austin lawyer accused in estate theft cases gives up law license, American Statesman (Austin, Texas), May 5, 2007.

Special thanks to Prof. Wayne Scott (St. Mary's University School of Law) for bringing this article to my attention.