These lawyers were the subject of Louisiana Supreme Court disciplinary orders or Louisiana Attorney Disciplinary Board recommendations that were made public during the month of February 2015.
Louisiana Supreme Court
- Larry G. Starns. The court granted a joint petition for consent discipline, and suspended the respondent from the practice of law for one year. The respondent acknowledged that he neglected a client’s legal matters, and that he caused harm to the client.
- Derrick Damond Jones. The court granted a joint petition for consent discipline, and suspended the respondent from the practice of law for six months. The respondent acknowledged that he practiced law while ineligible to do so, and that he failed to cooperate with the ODC in its investigation.
- M. Craig Colwart. The court granted a joint petition for consent discipline, and publicly reprimanded the respondent. The respondent acknowledged that he engaged in conduct constituting a conflict of interest.
- John E. Settle, Jr. The court granted a joint petition for consent discipline, and publicly reprimanded the respondent. The respondent acknowledged that he disrupted the proceedings before two courts and compromised the confidentiality of a Judiciary Commission investigation.
- Richard C. Teissier. The court suspended the respondent from the practice of law for a year and a day, with all but sixty days deferred. The investigation revealed that the respondent had previously been declared ineligible to practice law for (1) failing to satisfy his Mandatory Continuing Legal Education (MCLE) responsibilities, (2) failing to pay his bar dues and disciplinary assessment, and (3) failing to register his trust account. The court found that the respondent failed to send a client’s file to successor counsel, practiced law during a period of ineligibility, and failed to cooperate with the Office of Disciplinary Counsel in its investigation.
Louisiana Attorney Disciplinary Board
- Joyce Nanine McCool. The board recommended that the respondent be suspended from the practice of law for a year and a day. The respondent used the internet, blog posts, an online petition, and social media to spread information—some of which was false, misleading and inflammatory—about two judges presiding over family-law cases in which she was a litigant.
- Keri Glenn Armstrong. The board recommended that the respondent be suspended from the practice of law for a year and a day. The respondent failed to act with reasonable diligence and promptness, and failed to keep her clients reasonably informed about the status of their matters. The respondent also converted client funds to her own personal use while she was handling several bankruptcy proceedings.
- Donald R. Pryor. The board recommended that the respondent be suspended from the practice of law for a year and a day. In representing a client charged with burglary, the respondent offered the victim of the crime $300 to drop the charges, and $500 to miss court on the day of trial.
Louisiana Attorney Disciplinary Board Hearing Committees
- Olita Magee Domingue. Hearing Committee No. 22 recommended that the respondent be suspended from the practice of law for a year and a day. The committee also recommended that the respondent make full restitution to the complainant. The respondent failed to respond to a client’s request for an accounting of the fee paid, and for a refund of that fee. Furthermore, the respondent failed to produce a copy of deposit records concerning the fee, and failed to deposit the fee into trust.
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