Grievance arising in Divorce litigation where complaint filed by one spouse against the other spouse's lawyer.
Problem:
The Grievance Complaint alleged the spouse's lawyer took advantage of the self represented spouse, engaged in unnecessary discovery efforts and unreasonably rejected settlement proposals simply to prolong the litigation and increase legal fees. Also claimed that the lawyer's knowledge of and contact with the Court personnel resulted in unfair influence over the outcome.
Action:
Initially identified the ethical issues presented by the Complaint. Collected the appropriate records from the lawyer/client to formulate a strategy for response. Evaluated the overall progress of the Divorce litigation to confirm no unusual delay of the proceedings and read transcripts which revealed that the lawyer/client acted properly and confirmed the Judge's decisions were based on sound analysis of the evidence presented. Prepared the lawyer/client's substantive Answer/Response to address each category of alleged misconduct illustrating the lawyer/client's work was reasonable measured by the applicable Rules of Professional Conduct.
Result:
Grievance Complaint dismissed by Grievance Panel
