SEPTEMBER 28, 2017 TO BE PUBLISHED 

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---._**2017~SC-000142-KB** . KENTUCKY BAR ASSOCIATION
. MOVANT



### v. IN SUPREME COURT

JAMES GRANTKING RESPONDENT ' AND 2017-SC-000245
JAMES GRANT KING MOVANT



### v. IN SUPREME.COURT

KENTUCKY BAR ASSOCIATION RESPONDENT

·.OPINION AND ORDER Movant, James Grant King, Kentucky BarAssociation (KBA) Number 88465, 1 admits to violati,ng the Kentuclgr,Rules ofProfessional Conduct and

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.- 1 King was admitted to the practice oflawin Kentucky on October.23, 2000, andhis barroster address is 115 Noah Cove, SuiteA, Paducah, Kentucky 42003. j**~**. 

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moves this Court to impose the sanction ofpermanent disbarment. The KBA has no objection 

### to King's motion. I. BACKGROUND The misconduct leading up to King's motion to resign under terms of permanent disbarment spans six KBA files and occurred over the course of

. . ' more than a decade.. Only one ofthe files has progressed to the point ofthe KBA issuing charges; however, King acknowledges that sufficient facts exist in the remainingfiles tojustify the issuance ofcharges. In order to terminate all KBA proceedings, he seeks to resign under terms ofpermanent disbarment.· The facts contained in the KBA files are disconcerting to say the least. On separate occasions, King used various clients' funds for his personal use. To do so, King used an assortment oftactics. He lied about settlement agreements, failed to reimburse entities with subrogation interests, wrote cold checks, and falsified information. King has since been indicted on three felony charges related to fraud he perpetrated after defaulting on a loan. A. KBA File 16-DIS-0012 King represented Duane Isbell in a personal injury actibn in 2006. An agreed orderwas entered in 2007 statingIsbell would receive $75,000, but would be required toreimburse Medicare for his medical bills. King placed $20,000 ofthe settlementin escrow, purportedly to pay Medicare following ' - .

- negotiations ofthe total bill. King collected his fee out ofthe remaining

$55,000, then distributed the balance to Isbell. King.negotiated a

.reimbursement total ofalmost $14,000 with Medicare in 2008 and sentIsbell a

. ' 2letter in 2009 indicating he paid Medicare. In 2010, King gave Isbell a check for around $6,000, which should have beenthe balance remaining in the
escrow account after paying Medicare. Isbell grew concerned when years passed without him receiving a release from Medicare. In 2013, King sent Isbell a letter and a second checkpurportedly to Medicarefrom a separate
escrow account. However, that account had been drained offunds. In 2016, MediCare told**Isb~ll** it had never received a check from King and that interest had accrued over the years. Isbell's balance at that time was more than- $25,000. Isbell and Medicare both requested a copy ofthe cancelled check from King, but King responded to neither party. The Inquiry Commission charged King with violating SCR 3.130-1.3 for failing to pay Medicare on !shell's behalf: -1.15(a) for comingling funds, and

- 8A(c) for deceiving Isbell with a checkwritten·to Medicare from an account he

.knew had a**~ero** balance and dishonestly misappropriating the funds he should have used to pay Medicare. B. KBA**Fil~--16-DIS-0393** BruceJett, King's neighbor, loaned King $97,500. Under the terms of · the promissory note, Kingwas to pay interest of3.5% per annum and pay the loan offin full within a year. King also signed_the title ofa bass boat over to. Jett as**collater~.** After King failed to make any payments on the loan, Jett attempted to transfer the title to the**boa~** into his name as partial paymentfor ·the debt. However, King had fraudulently applied for a lost title and used. the copy to sell the boat to another.individual. King apparently used the funds to 3purchase anotherboat. King gave the new boat to Jett_as partial repayment;

. ' butJett had to_pay a balance on the boat, as Kingcould not pay the difference. As ofthe time this ca.se was filed, King still owed Jett approximately $30,000, ,. with interest continuing to accrue. Based on these actions, the McCracken County Grand Jury indicted King ofthree felonies: defrauding a secured creditor, entering**fals~** information to producea title document, and theft by deception. The Inquiry Commission has not issued a formal charge related to this
., KBA file, as it placed the case in abeyance pending the outcome ofthe underlying criminal charges. C. KBA File l 7-DIS-0067 Randall and Holley ReaViis hired King to represent them in a carwreck
case. The Reavises also granted King a limited power ofattorney. King signed
an agreement on behalfofHolley, settling her case for $33,000 and releasing all

### clai~s. However, in spite ofthis settlement, King continued to advise the 

### c Reavise_s that their case was still ongoing. Holley finally contacted the insurance carrier, and was.advised her claim had been settled and a check had been issued. Holley also learned that Randall's claim had·been settled for

I $60,000 and that his check had also been issued. Both checks were mailed to King's office and both had cl<?ared. Based upon these facts, King was charged with two counts oftheft by failure to make required disposition of**property-~** Just as with the previous file, ' t_he Inquiry Commission hasyet to issuea**for~al** charge. '\. 4 /.... ( D. KBA File 17-DIS-0051 Ron Brisbon hired King_in 2011 to represent him in a personal injury claim againstAllstate.Insurance. Since hiring**Kir~.g,** Brisbon has been contactedby medical providers and bill collectprs regarding unpaid'medical .J r . . bills. King consistently told Brisbon that hisclaivi hadyet to settle-even as recently as December 2016. However, when Brisbon contacted

### All~tate, Allstate informed Brisbon his claim had

### s~ttled in 2012 and provided Brisbon a copy ofthe check. The Inquiry Commission hasyet

### tO issue a formal charge-in this file. E. KBA File 17-DIS-0155
' ) King agreed to represent a close friend, Robert Fell, in apersonal injury_

. . action in .2013. In 2014, Fell was issued a check for approximately $12,000, but King told him these funds were only for his vehicle-and that his doctor's visits were not covered. When Fell heard ofKing's arrest for stealing clients' funds, he called the insurance company. Fell discovered that the case had ·actually been settleq**for:$50,000~** and the check had been made payable to

, I ' both Fell and King's law gffice. The Inquiry Commission has yet toissue a forrrial charge. F. KBA File 17-DIS-0166 Ira Littrell paid King a $1250 retainerronApril 17, 2017, to i::epresent him i:h a fraud case. King deposited the checkiri his bank account that day. King
was arrested on April 28, 2017, and (as:ofthe date the motions in the current

. ' case were filed) has remained incarcerated. Littrell filed this complaint after he
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# , realized King would not be able to represent him in the matter or refund his money. The Inquiry Commission has yet to issue a formal charge related to this file. II. DISCIPLINE King acknowledges that the conduct leading to the disciplinary and criminal charges**d~scribed** in the.

## KB!\**fil~s** wouldbe sufficient to permanently disbar him from the**pr~ctice** oflaw in the Commonwealth ofKentucky. He
' agrees that the conduct described in these files fails to complywith SCR 3.130- \ ' 8.4(b), -8.4(c), -.1.3, and -l.15(a). He also agrees that there are sufficient facts 

### " tojustify the issuance ofcharges in the files on which he has 1yet to be charged. King asks that this Court terminate all KBA proceedings against him by granting his motion to resign under terms ofpermanent disbarm.ent pursuant to**S~R** 3.480(3). King understands that this decision is unconditiona:J., final, and frrevocable and thathe will never be reinstated to the practice of_law in the · Commonwealth ofKentllcky. We agree that King's motion to withdraw his membership is appropriate pursuantto SCR 3.480(3). ·Therefore, it is hereby ORDERED that: 1. James GrantKing is permanently disbarred from the practice oflaw; and 2. The Kentucky BarAssociation's Petition for Temporary Suspension (in·
case number**2017-~C-000142-KB)** pursuantto SCR 3.165 is hereby · denied as**moo~;** and

6'- 3. In

### ~ccordance with'.°SCR 3.4SO, King shall pay all costs associated with these proceedings, said sum being $182.45, for which

## <:;xe~ution, may issue from this Court upon finality ofthis Opinion and Order; ·. ·and 4. Ptirsuant to .SCR 3.390, King shall, within ten (10) days from the entry ofthis O/pinion and Order, notify all clients, in writing, ofhi_s
. inability to representthem; notify, iin writing, all courts'in which he has matters pending ofhis disbarment from the'practice oflaw; and furnish copies ofall letters ofnotice to the Office ofBar Counsel. Furthermore, to the extent possible, King shall immediately cancel __J and cease any advertising activitiesin whichhe is engaged. All sitting
..All concur. ENTERED: September 28, 2017.

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