Opinion ID: 1198866
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Restec Account

Text: Restec was Vertecs' subsidiary. Dann and Hickey handled a sexual harassment claim against Restec brought by a former employee. Hickey had primary responsibility for the case. Moreover, as was true in the Vertecs' case, Dann substituted his initials for those of Hickey on WIPs reflecting hours worked in August 1990 and October through December 1990. For example, on one WIP there is the following notation from Dann: Put my initials here but give Phil [Hickey] credit for hours. Ex. 5C. Thus the bills that Restec received showed Dann working hours actually worked by Hickey. Again, Dann admits initial-switching but claims that this was a result of his desire to avoid double billing the client for work on the same matter performed by two members of the firm. CP at 27. Dann admits the same differential in hourly billing rates during the October through December 1990 period as in the Vertecs case, and admits that in August 1990 Hickey billed at $125 hourly and Dann at $150. He denies, however, that overbilling occurredeven though he admits that Restec paid its account in full. In January 1993, a former DGR associate mailed letters to all DGR clients indicating that the firm was under investigation for its billing practices by the Washington State Bar Association (WSBA). On March 31, 1996, a front page article about the investigation appeared in the Sunday joint edition of The Seattle Times and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer entitled Lawyers who flouted the rules escape reprimand. On May 20, 1996, the WSBA filed a formal complaint against Dann. [1] A three-day disciplinary hearing commenced on August 7, 1996. On October 24, 1996, Hearing Officer James C. Hanken recommended a two-year suspension for Dann due to four proved counts of violating Rule 8.4(c) of the Rules of Professional Conduct (RPC) by initial-switching. He also recommended a reprimand for Dann based on his finding that Dann committed additional violations of RPC 8.4(c) by secretly tape recording a telephone conversation with another attorney and, unbeknownst to that attorney, allowing a party interested in the topic of conversation to listen in. Dann appealed to the Disciplinary Board, which unanimously adopted the hearing officer's findings of fact, conclusions of law and recommended reprimand, while also, without comment as to its reasons, reducing the term of Dann's suspension to one year. Dann now appeals the Disciplinary Board's decision recommending a one-year suspension, contending that a clear preponderance of the evidence did not support the findings of misconduct and aggravating factors for his initial-switching activities, and that the sanction of a year-long suspension from the law is disproportionate punishment. Dann has not appealed the reprimand arising from the telephone incident.