Opinion ID: 2451203
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: Does substantial evidence support the findings of misconduct?

Text: ¶ 25 The WSBA must prove misconduct by a clear preponderance of the evidence. This is more than a mere preponderance, but less than beyond a reasonable doubt. The Disciplinary Board's ultimate conclusions of misconduct are upheld if supported by substantial evidence in the record, that is, sufficient evidence to persuade a fair-minded, rational person. Marshall, 160 Wash.2d at 330, 157 P.3d 859. Count 1 By not abiding by the client's objectives to try to settle the case as quickly as possible, Respondent violated RPC 1.2(a). ¶ 26 A lawyer is required to abide by the client's decisions concerning the objectives of the representation, the means by which those are carried out, and whether to accept a settlement offer. RPC 1.2(a). The hearing officer concluded Van Camp failed to assist Honkala in making decisions, failed to follow his instructions, and failed to advise him throughout, including not advising Honkala that he could settle the claims against him early in the representation through the permanent injunction. We find sufficient evidence exists to support this finding of misconduct. ¶ 27 The record establishes that Honkala repeatedly indicated he wished for quick resolution of this case, and yet Van Camp never communicated, nor explained the permanent injunction and offer of settlement to him. In fact, given Van Camp's admissions to the WSBA, it seems Van Camp never reviewed the permanent injunction at all. This failure to review, communicate, and explain the settlement offer is alarming. Van Camp could not abide by his client's decision concerning settlement if the client was never presented with the option of settlement. An attorney must communicate offers of settlement to the client and discuss in meaningful terms the advantages or disadvantages of accepting the proposal. This includes the lawyer's fees and costs associated with the various options. Then the attorney should make recommendations to the client about what is best, but the client controls and decides what to do regarding the claims. Van Camp did none of these things, constituting a violation of his ethical duties as an attorney. ¶ 28 While Van Camp argues Honkala's objectives were unclear because he gave conflicting instructions, that is, to pursue the counterclaims aggressively and to settle quickly, as the WSBA articulates, these are compatible. Aggressive pursuit of the counterclaims might have placed pressure on Wendle to settle with more favorable terms for Honkala. Moreover, Honkala's confusion and somewhat contradictory instructions in this case are, unfortunately, further evidence that Van Camp failed to properly counsel his client. ¶ 29 Van Camp's arguments on this count do him more harm than good. He continues to blame the client as the source of confusion. He argues Honkala understood what the permanent injunction called for right from the beginningbut if this is so, Honkala had no need of Van Camp or his $25,000 services. [6] Van Camp thought Honkala was seeking damages and refers to Honkala's various grievances against Wendle, but most of these were not made in the counterclaim. He blames Honkala for not settling at the mediation, but Honkala was leery of settlement only because it meant he lost the entirety of money he had paid to Van Camp. Van Camp states there was never a clear instruction from Honkala to settle despite not getting anything in return, but, in the material before us, quotes Renee Honkala's e-mail expressly stating that position. Board Ex. 44. Van Camp repeatedly asserts that an attorney should not be disciplined for failing to tease out what his client really wishes. But, in this record, extensive documentary evidence exists showing Honkala desired quick settlement and an end to the litigation. We therefore agree with the Disciplinary Board that Van Camp violated RPC 1.2(a). Count 2 By failing to follow up with attorney Richard Campbell's December 15, 2006 letter and other settlement proposals, Respondent violated RPC 1.3. ¶ 30 A lawyer shall act with reasonable diligence and promptness in representing a client. RPC 1.3. The Disciplinary Board concluded that Van Camp's failure to respond to Campbell's offers to settle violated RPC 1.3. We find that this is also supported by substantial evidence. Campbell sent Van Camp a settlement offer the very day Honkala hired Van Camp. Van Camp received the letter, but not the attachment. The attachment contained the proposed permanent injunction that would have ended the litigation against Honkala. Van Camp did not inform Campbell of the missing attachment, although Campbell specifically requested a response to the settlement offer. Nor did he communicate the offer to Honkala, who, as discussed previously, desired quick resolution. Honkala testified he was surprised to hear of the settlement offer in July 2007, eight months after Campbell sent it. Campbell continued to seek settlement throughout that period, and yet Van Camp never responded to those requests, in violation of his duty of diligent representation. ¶ 31 Van Camp argues that Honkala had already rejected a settlement before hiring Van Camp and that a lawyer is not required to communicate (or to even respond to) previously rejected offers. There is no evidence that Honkala rejected the offer; in fact, he sought counsel in order to better understand it. Van Camp additionally argues that he was in fact pursuing settlement, using a technique that had served him well in the past, pushing the case to mediation, and his technique just failed him in this instance. But Van Camp fails to explain why a conversation with Campbell in December 2006 was insufficient, and it was necessary to wait until July 2007 to mediate, when an offer was already on the table. We conclude a violation of RPC 1.3 has been established in this record. Count 3 By failing to timely provide the client with copies of letters and settlement proposals, even after repeated requests, Respondent violated RPC 1.4(a). ¶ 32 A lawyer must, under RPC 1.4(a), inform the client of any circumstance requiring the client's consent, reasonably consult with the client regarding the means by which the client's objectives will be accomplished, keep the client reasonably informed about the status of the matter, and promptly comply with any requests for information. The Disciplinary Board's conclusion that Van Camp violated RPC 1.4(a) is supported in the record by the numerous requests sent by Honkala seeking status updates and copies of documents. Twice in March Honkala requested copies of the documents filed in his case and mentioned he had repeatedly asked for these and received nothing. Van Camp finally sent some copies in April, but it is unclear what was sent. In August, Honkala was still seeking a copy of the settlement offer and proposed permanent injunction. ¶ 33 Van Camp does not dispute this failure, but instead argues he was confused about what documents he had, which is why he did not provide Honkala with what he was seeking. Van Camp alleges his negligence in this regard did not harm Honkala, since the permanent injunction was similar to the preliminary one. But given Honkala's desire, even if conflicted, of quick settlement, this failure could have cost Honkala and his wife months of lawsuit-related stress and expense. Regardless, as to the violation itself, the RPCs do not inquire about harm. There is substantial evidence, including Van Camp's own admission, to show he violated RPC 1.4(a). Count 4 By failing to explain clearly at the outset of representation how his fee would be calculated and/or how the client's $25,000 payment would be applied, Respondent violated RPC 1.4(b) and/or RPC 1.5(b). ¶ 34 The Disciplinary Board found Van Camp violated both RPC 1.4(b) and RCP 1.5(b). Under RPC 1.4(b), the lawyer shall explain a matter to the extent reasonably necessary to permit the client to make informed decisions regarding the representation. Under RPC 1.5(b), the lawyer is required to explain the rate or basis of the fee and the lawyer's billing practices, and, if asked, must provide the client, in writing, the basis or rate of the fee. [7] The record establishes that Van Camp failed to communicate how the fee would be calculated and applied. Further, the Disciplinary Board found entering into the ambiguous fee agreement itself to be a violation. The agreement was ambiguous because it included both hourly and retainer-type fee arrangements, and it was devoid of any description of the scope of representation. These conclusions are similarly supported by substantial evidence. ¶ 35 The hearing officer found that Honkala believed he was retaining Van Camp on an hourly basis, because hourly rates were discussed at the first meeting. We give considerable weight to her findings, especially with respect to the credibility of the witnesses. In re Disciplinary Proceeding Against Cramer, 165 Wash.2d 323, 332, 198 P.3d 485 (2008). Rather than dispute this, Van Camp argues that once it became clear Honkala was confused, in March, he communicated that it was a flat fee, so he complied with his ethical duty. This argument does not address RPC 1.4(b), in that Honkala needed sufficient information about the matter (including how the fee was being calculated) to make informed decisions concerning his case. Had Van Camp been clear that the $25,000 was a flat fee, Honkala might have sought a different attorney. Van Camp argues that his offer to arbitrate the fee should somehow excuse any violation. But, even if this were so, the offer was never communicated directly to Honkala. Van Camp suggested he would arbitrate the fee dispute to the WSBA, but then claimed he had earned well over $25,000 from the representation. ¶ 36 Van Camp additionally argues that the RPCs did not require a written fee agreement for flat fees at the time. While this is literally true, it does not excuse the confusing nature of his written fee agreementwhich Van Camp does not dispute. He agrees that a clearer fee agreement would have prevented Honkala's claims of misunderstanding now, continuing to imply that Honkala is misrepresenting himself to the WSBA. Even in those situations where no written fee agreement is required, in order to avoid confusion or later dispute, it is always wise to have one and, if a written fee agreement is used, it should be written in clear language that the client can understand. What is more, Van Camp knew that the phrase earned retainer was problematic based on his prior discipline, yet chose to retain that language, prompting this proceeding. We therefore find Van Camp violated both RPC 1.4(b) and RPC 1.5(b). Count 5 By charging $25,000 under the facts of this case, Respondent violated RPC 1.5(a). ¶ 37 A lawyer's fee must be reasonable. RPC 1.5(a). The Disciplinary Board concluded Van Camp violated this by charging $25,000 under the facts of this case. Of particular note were reasonableness factors 1, 4, 7, and 9:(1) the time, labor, novelty, difficulty, and skill required; (4) the amount involved and results obtained; (7) experience, reputation, and ability of the lawyer; and (9) and the terms of the fee agreement, including whether the client received a reasonable and fair disclosure of material elements of the fee agreement and the lawyer's billing practices. This conclusion is amply supported by the record. Decision Papers at 000022. ¶ 38 As already mentioned, experts testified for both sides concerning the reasonableness of the fee. Van Camp's expert, Mark Roecks, who obtained his understanding about the nature of the case from Deissner (not through reviewing the case file or pleadings3 RP at 544), testified that a $25,000 flat fee would not be unreasonable to take the case to trial, at least at the inception of the agreement. He could not testify about the reasonableness of this in relation to the actual work done. ¶ 39 The WSBA's expert, Leslie Weatherhead, who had reviewed all the pleadings and the entire case file, testified without hesitation that the fee was excessive and unreasonable. Weatherhead's testimony raised questions about the quality of representation in relation to the results obtained (factor 4): for example, neither the TRO nor the preliminary injunction gave any legal basis for using the court's power to silence Honkala, and in Weatherhead's mind raised huge issues of prior restraint, yet, since it was not defended, is basically what Honkala had to settle with. [8] Weatherhead questioned Van Camp's procrastination regarding discovery, because in his opinion a lawyer working on a flat fee would pursue discovery aggressively up front to demonstrate his seriousness about the case. He questioned the August 31, 2007, discovery preparation since any depositions would not be ready in time for a summary judgment filing on September 10, 2007, the cutoff for dispositive motions. Weatherhead reviewed the time reconstruction and questioned its accuracy. His testimony was extensive and comprehensive, and left little doubt that the fee here was unreasonable. ¶ 40 A review of Van Camp's reconstructed billing statements is extremely troubling and illustrates the unreasonableness of this fee. In describing his process, Barber, the paralegal tasked with the reconstruction, testified he went through the file page by page, building a timeline and accounting for any possible work that could have been done. For those tasks he was unfamiliar with, he simply guessed at the amount of time. His original estimates were in tenths of an hour, but Van Camp was unhappy with the resulting $8,000 to $10,000 fee and instructed Barber to use half-hour increments for attorney time. This change bumped the fee up to between $16,000 and $20,000, but Van Camp was unhappy that the figure was low. 4 RP at 882. Barber advised Van Camp the only way to increase the amount was to show Van Camp had reviewed every document that came in, and Van Camp instructed Barber to do so. The actual response or review time was immaterial, since Barber used the half-hour increment for each, so if it was a two-sentence letter or if it was a one-page letter, it didn't make any difference. Barber spent four or five days perfecting this time reconstruction, with a final total of over $33,000. But Barber testified that the first version, the $8,000 one, was the fairest estimation of time actually spent on Honkala's representation. 4 RP at 876-92. [9] Given this extensive evidence, we conclude Van Camp violated RPC 1.5(a). Count 9 By misrepresenting in his July 31, 2007 letter to Honkala that Campbell had provided a proposed preliminary injunction with his December 15, 2006 letter, Respondent violated RPC 8.4(c). ¶ 41 It is professional misconduct for a lawyer to engage in conduct involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit or misrepresentation. RPC 8.4(c). The hearing officer concluded Van Camp violated this in a letter to Honkala when he misrepresented that the permanent injunction Honkala requested was actually the preliminary injunction Honkala had been served with and which was currently in place. This too is supported by the record. ¶ 42 By the time Campbell sent the fax, on December 15, 2006, Campbell had already filed the motion for the preliminary injunction and the hearing had been noted for a few days later. Campbell's letter sought to finally resolve the suit through a permanent injunction. By July 31, 2007, the preliminary injunction had been in place for eight months, and the parties had been to mediation, where the permanent injunction was referenced. Van Camp may not have possessed a copy of it, but this does not change the nature of the document itself. The hearing officer, who was the judge of Van Camp's credibility, found he knowingly withheld this document to prolong the case and justify his fee. We agree with the hearing officer and the Disciplinary Board, and find Van Camp violated RPC 8.4(c).