Opinion ID: 1926090
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 7

Heading: client a.j.counts 17-19

Text: [8] ¶ 41. The OLR complaint alleged that on November 8, 2001, A.J. retained Cavendish-Sosinski to represent him after he had been charged with a Town of Brookfield ordinance violation and two Waukesha County misdemeanor criminal counts. A.J.'s mother paid $500 to Cavendish-Sosinski as an initial retainer to represent him. Cavendish-Sosinski sent notices of the retainer to each court and filed discovery requests. ¶ 42. On December 17, 2001, Cavendish-Sosinski told A.J.'s mother that A.J. did not have to be present for a hearing in the Town of Brookfield Municipal Court scheduled for December 20, 2001; as a result, A.J. did not attend that hearing nor did Cavendish-Sosinski. On December 22, 2001, A.J. received notice that a default judgment had been entered against him for his failure to appear at the December 20 hearing. ¶ 43. The OLR complaint further alleged that on December 27, 2001, a hearing was scheduled in the Waukesha County cases. When A.J.'s mother called Cavendish-Sosinski for the location for that hearing, Cavendish-Sosinski told her that an adjournment had been requested and granted. Because of the experience with the prior default judgment in the municipal court matter, A.J. called the Waukesha Court to confirm that the hearing had been adjourned. A.J. was informed that the matter was still on the court's calendar and that no adjournment had been requested or granted. A.J. appeared at the hearing pro se and was then told that had he not appeared, a bench warrant for his arrest would have been issued. The court rescheduled that hearing to January 8, 2002. ¶ 44. On December 27, 2001, the day of the Waukesha County hearing, the court's calendar clerk called Cavendish-Sosinski. Cavendish-Sosinski told the clerk that she believed that that hearing had been adjourned. Cavendish-Sosinski thereafter left on a trip to Louisiana but did not check the court file in order to confirm whether or not A.J.'s hearing had been adjourned. ¶ 45. On January 7, 2002, A.J. retained new counsel. By certified letter, A.J. requested a refund of his retainer from Cavendish-Sosinski and she thereafter withdrew as his counsel. ¶ 46. On January 14, 2002, A.J. and his mother filed a grievance with the OLR, and subsequently provided further written materials to substantiate their allegations against Cavendish-Sosinski. On April 3, 2002, the OLR staff requested Cavendish-Sosinski's written response to A.J.'s grievance; she failed to respond. Then on April 29, 2002, the OLR staff, via first-class, certified mail, sent Cavendish-Sosinski a second request for a response noting that she had failed to respond to the OLR's initial letter. Cavendish-Sosinski's secretary signed the certified receipt on May 7, 2002; however, again Cavendish-Sosinski did not respond to the OLR's request. ¶ 47. Subsequently, on May 13, 2002, the OLR staff, via certified letter and personal service, requested that Cavendish-Sosinski submit her written response, in person, at the OLR offices on May 20, 2002. Instead, Cavendish-Sosinski submitted a response via fax on that date. She also sent A.J. a copy of her response along with a $500 fee refund check. That refund was not made until May 21, 2002. Because Cavendish-Sosinski had not refunded A.J.'s fee immediately upon termination of the representation, A.J. had difficulty paying successor counsel. ¶ 48. Based on this course of conduct, the referee concluded that the respondent had committed the violations as alleged in Counts 17, 18, and 19 of the OLR complaint. Specifically, the referee concluded that Cavendish-Sosinski had failed to act with reasonable promptness and diligence, in violation of SCR 20:1.3; had failed to protect a client's interest, in violation of SCR 20:1.16(d); and had failed to cooperate with an OLR investigation, in violation of SCR 22.03(2).