Everett E. Wood was also ordered to pay nearly $20,000 for the costs of the proceedings against him, according to the Wisconsin Supreme Court's ruling.
The Office of Lawyer Regulation issued a complaint alleging 28 counts of professional misconduct against Wood (Wisconsin, '92) in July 2011. The counts involved inaction and lack of client communication in civil cases involving seven clients, and one count of practicing law during a time his license was suspended for failing to meet continuing education requirements.The court quoted the referee's finding:
These are matters where Mr. Wood simply failed to act diligently on client matters and then when confronted by his clients, failed to communicate. To compound the issue, when several of Mr. Wood's clients finally lost patience and brought the issue to the OLR for investigation, Mr. Wood often failed to cooperate with the OLR. Further, the misconduct doesn't involve just one case that slipped through the cracks——this misconduct spans a period of time and a series of cases. This is a pattern of misconduct that has caused Mr. Wood's clients unnecessary anxiety, stress and money.
Source:
Lawyer Withour Prior Discipline History Suspended Six Months
See Also:
Supreme Court of Wisconsin Ruling
This is wonderful. Lawyers should be disciplined if they fail to act or if they don't keep their clients informed -- a common occurrence.
ReplyDeleteYes, I can't imagine the grief to his clients who missed deadlines and cases that died on the vine. I think this lawyer Wood needs to get out of practicing law now and spare others from a disaster. I hope future clients research potential lawyers for information that could save them from a disaster.
ReplyDelete