Opinion ID: 836505
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: The Aghamirzadeh Matter

Text: In February 1994, Clark referred Aghamirzadeh to the accused. At their initial meeting, Aghamirzadeh gave the accused a check for $500 as a retainer to be applied toward her defense. The accused informed Aghamirzadeh at that time that his hourly rate was $125. Four days later, the accused cashed the check and spent the money on personal expenses. The accused testified that, at the time he did this, he knew he had worked only one hour on Aghamirzadeh's case, but he felt he was entitled to cash the check and spend the money because work was underway, and that it was going to be done in the very, very near future. The trial panel ruled that a lawyer who appropriates a fee knowing that he has not yet earned it is guilty of conversion and    such a conversion is a dishonest act for purposes of DR 1-102(A)(3). On that basis, the trial panel found that the accused had violated the rule. In so doing, the panel rejected the accused's arguments that (1) he did not know the disciplinary rules prohibit use of client funds before they are earned; (2) he could not have formed the requisite intent to convert Aghamirzadeh's money because of his mental condition, which includes depression, bipolar disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder; and (3) he is not guilty of converting the money because eventually he earned the fee. The accused argues to this court that he had an honest claim to Aghamirzadeh's money, insofar as he did not know that he was not entitled to spend the money before it was earned. Therefore, he argues, the Bar has not proved, by clear and convincing evidence, that his use of Aghamirzadeh's funds constituted intentional misappropriation in violation of DR 1-102(A)(3). We agree with the trial panel and the Bar that the accused converted Aghamirzadeh's money by spending it for personal expenses before it was earned. That proposition is self-evident and does not require extended discussion. However, as noted above, that act of conversion constitutes conduct involving dishonesty in violation of DR 1-102(A)(3) only if it was intentional or knowing, and not merely negligent, unknowing or innocent. Thus, a conclusion that the accused violated the rule requires more than merely finding that the accused intended to spend Aghamirzadeh's money before it was earned. If the accused's claim of ignorance of the rules is entitled to credit, then his conduct would be merely negligent, and not intentional or knowing. In the context of its finding of a violation of DR 1-102(A)(3) with respect to the Murphey matter, the trial panel expressly rejected as improbable the accused's claim that he was unaware of the existence of the disciplinary rules or that they prohibit the types of conduct at issue here. The trial panel implicitly rejected the same argument in the context of the Aghamirzadeh matter. Notwithstanding this court's de novo review in a disciplinary proceeding, we normally defer to the trial panel's assessment of credibility, because the panel saw and heard the witnesses. In re O'Neal, 297 Or. 258, 270, 683 P.2d 1352 (1984). In this case, the trial panel's implicit credibility finding comports with our own review of the record. Accordingly, for the reasons that follow, we find that the evidence in this case compels the inference that the accused had the necessary intent to appropriate the funds to himself. First, although the accused testified that he was unaware of the existence of the Oregon Code of Professional Responsibility at all times relevant to the charge of conversion, we find that position to be patently incredible. On becoming a member of the Bar, the accused, like all lawyers, was required to and did sign an Oath of Office in which he swore to observe and abide by the Code of Professional Responsibility and to uphold the laws of Oregon. Second, we do not credit the accused's claim of ignorance of the rule specifically prohibiting lawyers from spending client money before it is earned. At the time that the accused cashed Aghamirzadeh's check, he clearly knew that client funds must be deposited in a trust account, because he contemporaneously was preparing fee agreements for her to sign in which he agreed to deposit in a trust account funds that he received from her. The same rule that requires client funds to be placed in trust, DR 9-101(A), provides that a lawyer may withdraw funds from the account only when due. DR 9-101(A)(2). From the accused's awareness of one requirement of DR 9-101(A), we infer that he was aware of the others. Moreover, Aghamirzadeh testified that the accused told her at the initial meeting that he would draw on the $500 as he earned the money. Under the circumstances, we find that the accused knew that he was not allowed to spend the money before it was earned, and his conduct in so doing constituted an intentional misappropriation of client funds in violation of DR 1-102(A)(3). In light of that conclusion, the fact that the accused eventually earned the fees is irrelevant. See In re Whipple, 320 Or. 476, 481, 886 P.2d 7 (1994)(accused violated DR 1-102(A)(3) by intentionally appropriating a client's funds to his own use when he knew he had not yet earned them). In finding that the accused intentionally misappropriated Aghamirzadeh's $500, we reject the accused's argument that he lacked the capacity to form an intent to misappropriate client funds because of his mental condition. Assuming that the accused suffers from the various mental conditions that he claims, we find that those conditions never deprived the accused of the ability to appreciate the wrongfulness of his actions. Therefore, those conditions do not negate the element of intent for purposes of finding a violation of the disciplinary rule. See In re Eads, 303 Or. at 122-23, 734 P.2d 340 (rejecting lawyer's argument that, due to his chemical dependency, he did not have the cognitive capacity to appreciate the wrongfulness of his acts, and finding that the lawyer knew what he was doing when he used client money for his own purposes); In re Biggs, 318 Or. 281, 292, 864 P.2d 1310 (1994) (to same effect). The witnesses appearing before the trial panel who had the opportunity to observe the accused during the relevant time period were virtually unanimous in their testimony that the accused did not seem to be mentally impaired. Indeed, Clark, who also was the accused's girlfriend at the time, referred Aghamirzadeh to the accused. She testified that she would not have done so if she had had any indication that the accused was impaired mentally. She also testified that, at all times relevant to his representation of Murphey and Aghamirzadeh the accused was able to appreciate the difference between right and wrong.