Opinion ID: 2386034
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 16

Heading: theft of information from berman's office files

Text: In September, 1974, following his plea of guilty in the U.S. District Court to one count of mail fraud Morris S. Berman submitted his petition for resignation to the Court of Appeals of Maryland requesting that he be allowed until January 1, 1975, to wind up his practice. In the ensuing weeks there were many conversations between Berman and the Respondent to the effect that Respondent would take over Berman's practice, but no final agreement or financial settlement was reached. On November 8, 1974, the Court of Appeals accepted Berman's resignation with prejudice effective immediately. Respondent testified that during the weeks immediately following his disbarment, Berman took many of the manila case files from his office to his home and threatened to destroy them if financial arrangements could not be made whereby he could profit from them. Respondent stated that he was anxious to finalize taking over Berman's practice but had difficulty arriving at a basis for assessing its value. Shortly before Thanksgiving, according to Respondent, Berman proposed that the practice continue under Respondent's name with Berman remaining as his assistant in a capacity similar to that of an insurance adjustor which Berman contended did not constitute continuing to practice law. Respondent testified that he rejected this plan which precipitated in Berman's ordering him out of the office. At that time Respondent and L. Paul Snyder, Jr., a relative newcomer, were the only associates in Berman's office. The testimony was indefinite as to the number of open files in Berman's office which were being serviced by the Respondent and Snyder but it appears that the number was probably in excess of 600. When an office file was opened there were completed multiple copies of a 5 x 8 information sheet listing the basic identifying data concerning the case. One copy became the label on a manila envelope file which was created for each client. A pink copy of the file label was used as an index card. On Tuesday preceding Thanksgiving, 1974, when Berman was absent from the office, Respondent directed his associate Snyder and two secretaries, Maureen Ferrara and Linda Farrow to take the pink index cards relating to the cases being serviced by Respondent and Snyder and copy onto the backs of these pink slips from the manila files certain basic information concerning each case, such as medical information, the number of the police report, the insurer and the insurance claim number and the like, all of which necessitated working overtime that evening. On Wednesday night before Thanksgiving, without Berman's knowledge, Respondent and Snyder had their office possessions moved from Berman's office to another office in the same building, taking with them the pink slips previously referred to. During the night hours, at the direction of Respondent, Linda Farrow made photocopies of these slips. Several days later the original pink slips were returned to Berman. Commission Exhibit 21 is a group of these pink slips, numbering well over 200. Respondent testified at great length that this was done in order to inventory the cases which he hoped to acquire from Berman and enable him to place a value on them. The Commission contends that Respondent's purpose was to get sufficient information from each file so that he could recreate the file and represent the client involved, realizing that he would not be able to reach an agreement with Berman and that Berman's complete office file would not be turned over to him. Thereafter Berman completed arrangements for transferring his case files to Allen B. Spector, Esquire, with whom he had made financial arragements. There was no written agreement between Berman and Spector and the evidence is not clear as to what payments, if any, Berman later received from Spector. It is clear that Berman was seeking reimbursement for any money legitimately expended by him on behalf of former clients, such as court costs, costs of police reports, etc. and also payment on a quantum meruit basis for his legal services rendered clients before his disbarment. On December 9, 1974, a letter was sent out under the auspices of the Baltimore City Bar Association to Berman's former clients advising them that Berman recommends Spector for the future handling of their cases and that their files were in Spector's office. The client was told to retain a lawyer of his own choice to whom Spector would deliver the client's file. The letter also stated that Respondent and Snyder, former associates of Berman, were continuing practice at their new location. Commission Exhibit 20 is a copy of this letter. In addition to the Bar Association letter, Respondent also sent printed announcements to Berman's former clients giving the new location and telephone number of Respondent and Snyder. Respondent testified that these accouncements were not mailed until well after the Bar Association letter. Commission Exhibit 22 and 22A is one such announcement and envelope postmarked February 21, 1975. Respondent could not explain Commission Exhibit 32 and 32A which was another such announcement and envelope postmarked December 7, 1974. The Commission contends that Respondent's mailing of the announcements violated Respondent's agreement with the Bar Association and/or Berman that only the Bar Association letter would be sent to Berman's former clients. Respondent denied that any such agreement was reached. Respondent testified that after the Bar Association letter and his announcements were sent out many of Berman's former clients whom he had come to know came to him for representation but that he was unable to secure the original office files from Spector. However, by use of the information on the pink slips and with the cooperation of insurance companies, he was able to create a duplicate file and ultimately settle many cases. Respondent testified that he concluded that Berman had no legal claim to any of the proceeds of these settlements, neither for legitimate expenses incurred by Berman before his disbarment nor for legal services rendered before his disbarment on a quantum meruit basis. Respondent's Exhibit 9 is a legal memorandum from The Research Group, Inc. dated February 9, 1976, concluding that the majority view in this country is that the disbarment of an attorney is tantamount to voluntary abandonment of the attorney's contract with the client and therefore bars recovery by the attorney either in contract or in quantum meruit for services rendered. Consequently Respondent made no such payments to Berman. The evidence disclosed that Respondent's income from the practice of law during 1974 was $27,198. The following year, 1975, his income was $47,566. Respondent testified that this increase in his income in 1975 was due to his representation of former clients of Berman who came to him for continued representation.