Escondido Attorney Agrees to be Disbarred

An atttorney in Escondido recently admitted to stealing $275,000 from an elderly client's inheritance and has agreed to be disbarred. 

Sydney Claire Kirkland drained all but $10,000 from a trust account that an 80-year-old client set up.  That client put the money in a client trust account with Kirkland, who had previously done legal work for him. In June 2011, the county's adult protective services got a complaint from a bank manager and intervened. When APS questioned Kirkland, she lied to the agency.  In addition to being disbarred, Sydney Claire Kirkland faces criminal charges of grand theft and stealing from an elderly adult.  Kirkland became ineligible to practice law on January 19. 

See Greg Morgan, Attorney Disbarred, Ripped Off Elderly Client, U-T San Diego, Feb. 1, 2013. 

Special thanks to Brian Cohan (Attorney at Law, Law Offices of Brian J. Cohan, P.C.) and Jim Hillhouse (Professional Legal Marketing (PLM, Inc.)) for bringing this article to my attention.