Opinion ID: 1520612
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: Overdraft Agreement

Text: At Harrison's disciplinary hearing in 1983, it was shown that Harrison's failure to keep a careful running account of the funds in his personal checking account contributed to his problems concerning his client's funds. Claiming that petitioner is still plagued by an inability to handle money, Bar Counsel presented evidence at the reinstatement hearing which allegedly showed that Harrison's personal checking account was overdrawn during certain months of his suspension. The Hearing Committee found, however, that Harrison had an arrangement with his bank to cover most checks written on insufficient funds. Thus, the Committee concluded that any overdrafts were a reflection of the credit arrangement between Harrison and his bank, and that there was no evidence, as Bar Counsel conceded, that Harrison knowingly wrote checks on insufficient funds. The Committee found that because he had committed no wrongdoing and, especially in light of Harrison's convincing testimony that if readmitted he would significantly improve his bookkeeping practices with respect to his clients' funds, his personal banking practices during the period of his suspension did not furnish grounds for denying Harrison's petition for reinstatement. We are again influenced by the Committee's conclusions regarding petitioner's future ability to handle client funds. Moreover, in the absence of evidence that Harrison knowingly issued bad checks, we cannot say that his use of an overdraft agreement on his personal checking account, in a manner worked out with his bank, is conduct warranting a denial of his petition for reinstatement.