These Louisiana lawyers were the subject of Louisiana Supreme Court disciplinary orders or Louisiana Attorney Disciplinary Board recommendations made public during the month of August 2014.
Louisiana Supreme Court
- Frank V. Zaccaria, Jr. The court granted a joint petition submitted by the respondent and ODC for transfer to active status.
- Trent Anthony Garrett, Sr. The court ordered that the respondent be suspended from the practice of law for a period of one year and one day, and it ordered that this suspension run retroactively to the respondent’s previous suspension. The court also found additional violations warranting discipline, which it will consider in the event the respondent seeks reinstatement after his suspension. The respondent failed to file suit on behalf of a client before the applicable Mississippi statute of limitations expired, and he failed to respond to formal charges filed by the Office of Disciplinary Counsel.
- Confidential Party. The court rejected a joint petition for consent discipline submitted by the respondent and ODC, and remanded the matter for the institution of formal charges.
- Jeremy Douglas Dean. The court granted the respondent’s petition for permanent resignation from the practice of law in lieu of discipline. The respondent engaged in multiple instances of serious misconduct, including commingling and conversion of client funds.
Louisiana Attorney Disciplinary Board
- Kevin Lenn Hanchey. The board recommended that the respondent be permanently disbarred from the practice of law, and recommended that the respondent be ordered to refund any unearned fees and make restitution to the clients whose funds he converted. The board based its recommendation on a finding that the respondent repeatedly engaged in misconduct by failing to diligently provide legal services for his clients, converting client funds for his own personal use, practicing law while ineligible, and participating in a scheme to defraud a chiropractor.
- Wade P. Richard. The board recommended that the respondent be permanently disbarred from the practice of law. The respondent engaged in serious misconduct by conspiring and attempting to sell narcotics to an undercover police officer. He was arrested and charged with possession of a controlled dangerous substance. He was eventually convicted of misdemeanor possession of drug paraphernalia, and he had an extensive history of criminal conduct.
- William Harrell Arata. The board recommended that the respondent be suspended from the practice of law for a period of three years, fully deferred. The board also recommended that the respondent be required to enter into a five-year contract with the Lawyers’ Assistance Program. The board further recommended that the respondent be subject to a period of probation to run concurrently with the respondent’s five-year LAP contract. The respondent was arrested by DEA agents for possession of opiates, his drug test showed positive results for cocaine and hydrocodone, and he also admitted to smoking marijuana.
- Christopher Sidney Bowman. The board dismissed the formal charges filed against the respondent. In response to a newspaper reporter’s questions concerning a recently decided case, the respondent, who was the press spokesperson for the Orleans Parish District Attorney’s Office, stated that the judge who ruled on the case “thwarted” the efforts of the DA’s Office. The board found that the respondent did not knowingly make a false statement, that he did not make this statement with reckless disregard for the truth, and that the statement did not concern the qualifications or integrity of the judge.
- Allen A. Krake. The board recommended that the respondent be suspended from the practice of law for a year and a day. The respondent practiced law while ineligible to do so because of his failure to maintain his professional obligations, and he also failed to respond to complaints filed by the Office of Disciplinary Counsel.
- John D. Conry. The board recommended that the respondent be permanently disbarred from the practice of law. The disciplinary proceeding involved the consolidation of four cases brought against the respondent. The board found that the respondent had committed numerous offenses, including commingling and conversion of client funds, neglecting client matters, and failing to provide diligent representation.
Louisiana Attorney Disciplinary Board Hearing Committees
- C. Gary Wainwright. Hearing Committee No. 8 recommended that the petitioner’s petition for reinstatement be granted, and it recommended that he be reinstated to the practice of law. The committee noted that the petitioner’s misconduct was a result of poor calendaring and office practices, and it recommended that he consider using at least one hour of his MCLE in each of the next few years on the topic of law office management. The petitioner had been suspended from the practice of law for eighteen months.
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