Former St. Augustine mayor, elder law attorney suspended for misconduct, conflicts of interest

Joseph Boles, Jr. appointed himself beneficiary or trustee of multiple families' wills and trusts without written consent.

Author: Atyia Collins

ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. — The Florida Supreme Court suspended prominent St. Augustine attorney and former city mayor Joe Boles after he admitted to misconduct and conflict of interest following an investigation by the Florida Bar.  

The 90-day suspension comes after a judge determined Boles showed "a pattern of misconduct" in violating Bar rules governing conflicts of interest. The Bar filed its complaint against Boles last November after receiving two complaints from Boles' clients and discovering a third concerning case while investigating.

Boles, who specializes in estate planning and elder law, serves as the president and chairman of the St. Johns County Council on Aging. He served as St. Augustine mayor from 2006 to 2014, and as a City Commissioner for two years before that.  

According to court records in the case, Boles designated himself as a surrogate designated beneficiary or backup successor trustee without getting written consent from his clients. 

The original complaint names three victims.

In the first victim's case, the complaint says Boles was hired in 2020 to create a trust for a woman with aggressive cancer. The woman's designated successor trustee said Boles appointed himself as backup successor trustee against both women's wishes. Boles denied this and told Bar investigators he did so with the client's permission. But Bar investigators determined he failed to obtain written consent to do so, as required.

In a second case, a woman said she met with Boles in 2015 for his offer of free will preparation and then again in 2021 to modify her will and request a trust. She alleges that after reviewing the documents, she discovered that Boles was named as trustee of the trust, and Boles' law partner (and stepson) was named backup successor. 

The complaint says "[Boles] unilaterally appointed himself as the personal representative in her will, appointed, himself as her healthcare surrogate, and appointed himself as [the client's] preneed guardian in the event of her future incapacity."

The client ultimately hired a different attorney to assist her with revoking the trust and drafting new estate planning document. 

Boles said he had the client's permission, but acknowledged he "failed to obtain the written informed consent ... to appoint himself," as required by law. 

During its investigation into the two complaints, the Bar also discovered a third case in which Boles named himself as a surrogate designated beneficiary in the will.

The complaint says Boles; "drafted and filed affidavits for the beneficiaries designated in the will ... in which they gave up all of their rights and responsibilities in the estate and designated respondent as the surrogate beneficiary." 

Boles told investigators he was asked to do so by his clients, but investigators found he failed to advise them to seek independent legal counsel before signing the waivers. Ultimately, Boles handled this case on a pro bono basis and distributed the proceeds of the sale of the home to the beneficiaries.

In recommending discipline in the case, the designated "referee," 4th Circuit Judge Meredith Charbula said she took into account several mitigating factors, including Boles' "absence of a prior disciplinary record; timely good faith effort to make restitution or to rectify the consequences of the misconduct; full and free disclosure to the bar or cooperative attitude toward the proceedings; character or reputation; and remorse."

The judge also found no evidence that Boles wrongfully appropriated any money or assets to his own use.

As part of the suspension, Boles is prohibited from accepting new business until he is reinstated. He will also pay disciplinary costs of $2,565. He will be automatically reinstated after the suspension is completed.

Full Article & Source:
Former St. Augustine mayor, elder law attorney suspended for misconduct, conflicts of interest

Denver attorney is barred from practicing law for one year after multiple arrests

Robert Corry admitted to violating 13 rules of professional conduct

By Shelly Bradbury

A Denver attorney who was arrested at least four times in 2019 was suspended Friday from practicing law for one year and one day.

Robert Corry admitted to violating 13 rules of professional conduct and was suspended by Presiding Disciplinary Judge William Lucero.

The prominent Denver attorney and legal marijuana proponent was disciplined for committing a criminal act that reflected poorly on his fitness to be a lawyer, for charging unreasonable fees, mishandling client funds or property, failing to promptly and effectively communicate with clients and representing clients despite conflicts of interest, among other professional violations, according to the judge’s order.

Corry declined to comment on the suspension Monday.

Corry was arrested four times between June and October 2019 and faced allegations including violating a restraining order, driving under the influence, committing domestic violence and threatening people in public with a sword.

In 2013, Corry was arrested for smoking marijuana at a Rockies game and smashing the window of a recreational vehicle.

Corry was among the most prominent marijuana attorneys in the state, helping to draft Colorado’s successful marijuana-legalization ballot initiative and representing marijuana advocates in several significant legal victories.

He will have 14 days to notify his clients of the suspension, which began Friday, according to the order.

Full Article & Source:

Denver attorney is barred from practicing law for one year after multiple arrests

Former ward of disgraced guardian Rebecca Fierle won his rights back. Then he died

Jack Meagher says his court-appointed guardian, Rebecca Fierle, doesn't respect his wishes, and he doesn't need someone to make decisions for him.
Click to Watch Video

By Monivette Cordeiro

James “Jack” Meagher Jr. was always a proud man, those who knew him said.

When a judge declared him incapacitated in 2018 and put him under the care of former Orlando guardian Rebecca Fierle, the Winter Springs man fought in court and in the press to prove he was capable of making decisions about his life. Meagher, who was disabled, traveled with his motorized wheelchair to get groceries, took photos of meals he cooked and dressed himself.

“[Fierle] is not looking out for my best interests,” a then 67-year-old Meagher told the Orlando Sentinel in 2019.

Rebecca Fierle

After a statewide scandal that led to Fierle’s resignation from hundreds of cases — and later arrest, on charges that she caused the death of another ward through abuse and neglect — Meagher and his attorney convinced a Seminole County circuit judge in April to restore his civil rights and discharge the guardian who replaced Fierle on his case.

It was a rare victory Meagher was only able to enjoy for four months — he died Aug. 13 of pancreatic cancer that had metastasized, his daughter Melanie Meagher said.

“He was reborn after guardianship,” said Sam Sugar, founder of the South Florida-based organization Americans Against Abusive Probate Guardianship, who knew Meagher from his work. “To have his new life cut short by a physical injustice, it’s really just tragic.”

The stories of Meagher and other Fierle clients and reporting by the Sentinel exposed widespread flaws in Florida’s guardianship system, prompting the Legislature to pass reforms aimed at reducing conflicts of interest and creating additional oversight for the court-appointed decision-makers, who assume full control over the lives of their wards.

Meagher, 68, was an Irish American who was born in New Jersey. He married Darcy Meagher in 1972 and had four children. They moved to Central Florida in 1979 and Meagher started A Budget Tree Service in 1981, a business which he eventually passed down to his son Dale Meagher, his daughter said.

“Dad worked from sunup till sundown,” said Melanie Meagher, 44. “He was always fixing something. ... People were inspired by that work ethic.”

After his wife’s death in 2014 from cancer, Meagher’s health declined and he needed care, his daughter said.

“It was difficult for Jack to lose function of his physical body,” she said. “He needed the assistance but he was a very proud man. Asking for help in his generation as a man was unheard of.”

Melanie Meagher said her family was desperate to get care for her father.

Her siblings sought a risk protection order against him — under a provision of Florida’s “red flag” law that allows a judge to prohibit someone considered a risk to themselves or others from possessing weapons — and later opted for guardianship, thinking that would provide him the best care possible, she said.

Circuit Judge Kenneth R. Lester appointed Fierle, a private guardian, to make medical, financial, housing, legal and personal decisions for him Nov. 5, 2018. Wards like Meagher can lose the right to marry, vote, travel or have a driver’s license. They also lose the right to decide where they live, how they spend their money and what doctor they go to.

Fierle came under fire after the death of an incapacitated client, 75-year-old Steven Stryker.

Stryker died at a Tampa hospital in May 2019 after medical staff were unable to attempt to save his life because Fierle had signed a “do not resuscitate” order against his wishes and the protests of his daughter, health-care surrogate and psychiatrist.

Fierle also insisted Stryker’s feeding tube be capped, despite being warned that he could choke and die, according to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. Days later, Stryker aspirated and died.

The disgraced guardian, who was arrested in February on charges of aggravated abuse and neglect of an elderly person, has denied wrongdoing and pleaded not guilty. Multiple investigations found Fierle routinely filed DNRs on her incapacitated clients and unearthed conflicts of interest in her handling of cases, including that AdventHealth Orlando paid her nearly $4 million over a decade to care for vulnerable patients — a financial arrangement not allowed without court approval.

“I don’t want to die,” Meagher told the Sentinel after the Stryker case came to light, when he was still legally under Fierle’s care.

Court records show Fierle said she had no DNR order in place for Meagher. He accused her of ignoring his wishes and ridiculing him.

“We trusted the state and the guardianship ... only to find out that was a very neglected department where they weren’t doing things correctly,” Melanie Meagher said.

After Fierle’s resignation, Nicola Fitchner was appointed Meagher’s guardian. Meagher hired attorney David Yergey III to get him out of the guardianship and restore his rights, Yergey said.

Through her attorney David Brennan, Fitchner asked a judge for the authority to sue Dale Meagher and the tree-trimming business Jack Meagher had handed down to him for using his father’s properties. Brennan said Fitchner didn’t endorse Meagher’s efforts to restore his capacity.

“This latest attempt to obtain the ward’s restoration to capacity is a strategy to preempt the guardian’s ability to recover assets and income for Mr. Meagher,” Brennan wrote in a court filing.

Lester restored Meagher’s rights April 8.

“He was very excited and wanted to know when he could get his driver’s license back,” Yergey said. “I remember he wanted to go out and do stuff but he couldn’t because of the whole [COVID-19] situation. ... It was my accomplishment of the year. I used my law license for something that carried a greater purpose.”

Meagher’s family and Fitchner are still fighting in court over fees and expenses the guardian and her attorney are trying to collect from his estate — $19,231 for Brennan’s law firm and nearly $4,365 for Fitchner for work they did from Aug. 1, 2019 to May 11.

Dale Meagher’s attorney, Lisa McCrystal, said her client has been wrongfully accused by the guardian of exploitation when in fact he had been helping with the costs of his father’s care. McCrystal said she’s objecting to fees she considers “unnecessary work.”

“Everything in guardianship is supposed to be for the best interests of the ward,” she said. “... We felt the guardian was [taking legal action] because they wanted to inflate the amount of the ward’s estate. In guardianship and probate proceedings, the amount of fees is directly tied to the estate.”

Brennan called McCrystal’s statement a “malicious accusation of dishonesty.”

“It is patently defamatory,” he said. “The ’unnecessary work’ she claims is the time spent trying to get her client, the loving son, to pay a reasonable amount for use of this property.”

Melanie Meagher said her parents passed along their business to her brother years ago and called the guardian’s involvement an “abuse of authority.” The last thing Jack Meagher said to his children was “I love you” before dying peacefully at hospice care, she said.

“My father was this big, burly tough guy with squishy insides,” she said. “He had a big heart. He was proud of his life, proud of the children he raised. My mom was his best friend and his rock. I’m glad they’re together again.”

Full Article & Source:
Former ward of disgraced guardian Rebecca Fierle won his rights back. Then he died

See Also:
Jack Meagher

Florida’s troubled guardianship system riddled with conflicts of interest, critics claim | Special Report

James “Jack” Meagher thought he was capable of managing his own affairs, but his sons said their father was mentally ill, suicidal and abusive, and needed a guardian to manage his money and health-care decisions. They went to court in 2018, asking a judge to declare their father legally incapacitated.

The judge turned to Seminole County’s Guardianship Examining Committee, a roster of doctors, psychiatrists and other experts who help determine whether someone is incapable of caring for himself or his property. Florida law requires a three-person committee to examine someone before he can be declared incapacitated, and one member must be a psychiatrist or physician.

After being examined, the judge ruled Meagher incapacitated and placed him under the care of Orlando-based professional guardian Rebecca Fierle, who was suddenly in charge of making every decision in Meagher’s life.

Meagher, 67, was surprised to learn, months later, that Fierle had a close connection with Thomas Sawyer, the doctor who helped declare him incapacitated: Sawyer’s son-in-law is Thomas Moss, an attorney who has frequently represented Fierle in dozens of her guardianship cases across Central Florida.

“That seemed a little strange,” said Meagher of Winter Springs. “It made me think he already had a preformed opinion because he’s buddy-buddy with Rebecca.”

Fierle is currently under criminal investigation after it was revealed that she had filed unauthorized “do not resuscitate” orders on incapacitated clients, sparking a scandal that has embroiled Florida’s guardianship program. She has since resigned from all her cases.

Experts say cases like Meagher’s reflect another flaw in Florida’s system meant to protect the state’s most vulnerable adults: The examining committees relied upon to help judges decide the fitness of potential wards are often made up of a small pool of people with existing ties to the guardianship industry, despite state statutes meant to prevent potential conflicts of interest.

Sawyer and Moss denied any impropriety.

“The relationship of my wife and me to my father-in-law has become well-known by those in Central Florida’s guardianship court system and those who handle guardianship matters,” Thomas Moss said in a statement. "The fact that Dr. Sawyer is my father-in-law has never been hidden and in fact, has been disclosed. Such disclosure is the reason you will find that Dr. Sawyer has rarely been appointed by the Courts in our cases.”  (Click to Continue)

Full Article & Source:
Florida’s troubled guardianship system riddled with conflicts of interest, critics claim | Special Report