Opinion ID: 2362817
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: The Weeks Matter

Text: Lisa Kim Weeks retained Rosenthal in March of 1976 to represent her in a bankruptcy matter. She arranged with him to complete payment of the $500 fee before the anticipated filing of the bankruptcy petition in October 1976. In January 1977, she advised Rosenthal that her wages were being garnished in the amount of approximately $100 per month. She paid the balance of her fee to him in March of 1977. At that time he informed her that he would file the petition and that the case would be heard by the court in April 1977. He also promised her that he would reimburse her for any garnished wages. From April until late summer of 1977, Rosenthal evaded his client and cancelled their appointments. During that time Ms. Weeks consulted another attorney who secured Rosenthal's promise to complete the bankruptcy matter. He did nothing. In the fall of 1977, Ms. Weeks retained other counsel who determined that Rosenthal had never filed the petition for bankruptcy. Her new attorney filed the petition and represented her in the matter. Because Rosenthal refused to return to Ms. Weeks the $500 fee, she sued him and obtained a judgment for $1,500, including the $500 fee and $1,000 in garnished wages. At the time of the hearing before the Disciplinary Review Board, more than $1,000 remained due on the judgment. At the hearing before the District XI Ethics Committee, Rosenthal admitted that he had acted improperly. He gave no explanation for his conduct. He stated that the delay was caused by inertia and was not accompanied by fraud or misrepresentation. The Committee found that Rosenthal had failed to act competently as required by DR 6-101. At the hearing before the Disciplinary Review Board, Rosenthal responded to questions by Board members by admitting that he was annoyed with his client. He felt that he was in a moral dilemma because of his personal judgment that she was acting unfairly in seeking to avoid her obligations by bankruptcy. The Disciplinary Review Board concluded that Rosenthal had failed to act because his client's desires conflicted with his personal opinion of her conduct. His failure to represent her zealously violated DR 7-101(A)(1), (2) and (3).