Opinion ID: 2582135
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: The Frederickson/Lowry Matter

Text: On June 6, 2001, DeRuiz met with Robert Frederickson at the Indian Ridge correction facility, where Frederickson signed a written fee agreement in which Frederickson agreed to pay DeRuiz a $1,500 nonrefundable fee to represent him at a probation review hearing. DeRuiz told Frederickson and his mother, Beverly Lowry, that he would get Frederickson out of jail within a few days after Frederickson paid the fee. Lowry paid the $1,500 fee on June 12, 2001. Around June 13, 2001, Frederickson placed a collect call to DeRuiz and asked him if a court date for the probation review hearing had been scheduled. DeRuiz told him that a date would be set soon. Between June 13, 2001, and July 9, 2001, Frederickson tried several times, unsuccessfully, to call DeRuiz to find out the date for the hearing. DeRuiz never responded to Frederickson's inquiries. DeRuiz stipulated that he did not write or speak to Frederickson after June 13, 2001. On June 26, 2001, Frederickson called Snohomish County District Court and learned from the court clerk that a hearing date had not been scheduled. The court clerk told him that a court date had not been set because DeRuiz had filed the wrong papers. On June 27, 2001, DeRuiz filed a notice to schedule a motion for sentence review, requesting that the matter be set for July 9, 2001, at 9:30 a.m. The court set the hearing for that date and time. Sometime between June 29, 2001, and July 9, 2001, after numerous attempts to reach DeRuiz, Lowry finally spoke with him. [2] Lowry asked DeRuiz when the hearing would take place. DeRuiz was upset and suggested to Lowry that he should terminate his representation of Frederickson because Frederickson had contacted the court to find out whether a hearing had been set in his case. However, DeRuiz did not tell Lowry that he was in fact terminating the representation or that he would not be present at the hearing, and he never filed a notice of withdrawal from the case. DeRuiz told Lowry that the hearing was scheduled for July 9, 2001, and terminated the call. DeRuiz had no contact with Lowry or Frederickson after this telephone call. On July 9, 2001, Lowry, her daughter, and a family friend were present in court for the probation review hearing. Frederickson was not present because DeRuiz failed to arrange transportation from the correctional facility. DeRuiz was also absent from court. Lowry, her daughter, and the prosecutor tried to reach DeRuiz, but they were unsuccessful. The court canceled the hearing because DeRuiz was not present. Immediately after the hearing was canceled, Lowry went to DeRuiz's office, but he was not there. Lowry left him a note, asking why he did not appear in court and requesting her money back. She also unsuccessfully tried to reach DeRuiz by telephone for another week. On August 1, 2001, Lowry sent DeRuiz a letter by certified mail dated July 31, 2001, asking DeRuiz to return the $1,500 and asking why he did not appear in court on July 9, 2001. DeRuiz did not return any of the $1,500, did not respond to Lowry, and did not file a notice of withdrawal. Lowry eventually obtained a civil default judgment against DeRuiz in the amount of $1,590. On August 20, 2001, the WSBA sent DeRuiz a letter requesting his response to grievances filed by Lowry and Frederickson. DeRuiz responded but did not address his failure to appear for the July 9 hearing. On October 29, 2001, the WSBA sent DeRuiz a letter requesting an additional response to the grievance, and specifically asked DeRuiz to explain why he failed to appear at the hearing. The WSBA also asked DeRuiz to provide a complete copy of the client file, including the written fee agreement. DeRuiz failed to respond and failed to provide a copy of his file. On December 3, 2001, the WSBA issued a subpoena duces tecum for DeRuiz to appear at a deposition on January 3, 2002, with his complete client file. ABC Legal Messenger Service personally served DeRuiz on December 10, 2001. One day before the scheduled deposition, DeRuiz faxed a letter indicating that he was in the Czech Republic and would not be able to attend the deposition. Disciplinary counsel rescheduled the deposition for January 14, 2002. On January 14, 2002, DeRuiz appeared for the deposition and brought a copy of his client file. Before the deposition was completed, and before disciplinary counsel asked DeRuiz why he failed to appear for Frederickson's July 9 hearing, DeRuiz terminated the questioning, stating that he wished to consult with counsel. Disciplinary counsel agreed to continue the deposition for two weeks to enable DeRuiz to obtain counsel and asked DeRuiz to have his lawyer contact the WSBA before January 22, 2002, to reschedule the deposition. Neither DeRuiz nor his counsel contacted the WSBA before January 22, 2002. On January 23, 2002, disciplinary counsel notified DeRuiz that the deposition was rescheduled for January 29, 2002. On January 28, 2002, DeRuiz left a voice mail message for disciplinary counsel indicating that he believed he had already provided the WSBA with the necessary information. DeRuiz did not appear for the January 29 deposition. On February 5, 2002, disciplinary counsel sent a letter to DeRuiz offering to reschedule the deposition for February 19, 2002. DeRuiz did not respond to this letter.