Illinois Supreme Court disbars 6, suspends 17 in latest disciplinary filing

The Supreme Court of Illinois announced the filing of lawyer disciplinary orders on May 14, 2015, during the May Term of Court. Sanctions were imposed because the lawyers engaged in professional misconduct by violating state ethics law.

DISBARRED

• Karim G. Dure, Evanston

Mr. Dure, who was licensed in 1999, was disbarred on consent. He pled guilty to a federal criminal indictment charging him with wire fraud. Mr. Dure participated in a scheme to fraudulently obtain mortgage loan funds from a lender for use in a client’s purchase of two Chicago properties. Mr. Dure assisted the client in making misrepresentations to the lender regarding the client’s assets.

• Deeba Khursheed Mallick, Arlington, Va.

Ms. Mallick, who was licensed in 2006, was disbarred on consent. She pled guilty to a federal charge of misprison of felony. In her plea agreement, she admitted that, while holding various roles at Gallant Pharma International, Inc., including office manager, she identified prospective customers for misbranded, non-FDA approved drugs and arranged for the importation and distribution of those drugs. The imported drugs included injectable chemotherapeutic agents, injectable cosmetic fillers, and injectable agents used to treat side effects of chemotherapy, many of which were subject to federally-mandated strict temperature controls which were not complied with by Gallant. She was sentenced to a nine-month prison term. She was suspended on an interim basis on February 27, 2015.

• Joseph Patrick McCaffery, Aurora

Mr. McCaffery, who was licensed in 1991, was disbarred. He misappropriated over $8,400 in client funds, made false statements to a court and the ARDC about his use of some of the funds, and failed to return unearned fees. Additionally, he engaged in several conflicts of interest in a criminal matter and filed a frivolous request to hold a prosecutor in contempt. Finally, he failed to keep his clients informed about the status of a foreclosure case, acted in his own interests in renting his clients’ property without their permission, used rental proceeds from that property for his own benefit, provided false information to a housing agency, and failed to ensure that a non-lawyer associate acted in accordance with ethics rules. He was suspended on an interim basis on November 26, 2014.

• Matthew Charles Montgomery, Des Moines, Iowa

Mr. Montgomery, who was licensed in 2005, was disbarred on consent. Between 2010 and 2014, he sought and received reimbursement from his law firm for more than $130,000 in fictitious travel and other expenses purportedly relating to client matters, knowing that the firm would charge its clients for, and that the clients would pay, those fraudulent charges.

• Jerry Lee Peteet, Gary, Ind.

Mr. Peteet, who was licensed in 1990, was disbarred. He was convicted in federal court of conspiracy to commit racketeering and attempt to commit murder in aid of racketeering activity.  His convictions arose from his involvement with the Wheels of Soul, a motorcycle club. He was suspended on an interim basis on December 11, 2013.

• John Charles Roth, Naperville

Mr. Roth, who was licensed in 1989, was disbarred. He filed a false affidavit and medical report stating that a medical doctor had agreed that there was a reasonable and meritorious cause for filing a medical malpractice case. He also agreed to represent clients on a contingent basis without reducing the agreement to writing, changed the fee agreement to an hourly agreement during the course of that representation, and placed approximately $16,000 of unearned client funds for future fees and costs into an account other than a client trust, then used those client funds for his own purposes without authority. He did not participate in his disciplinary proceeding.

SUSPENDED

• Jeffrey John Aleman and Thomas George Macey, Chicago

Mr. Aleman, who was licensed in 1997, and Mr. Macey, who was licensed in 1993, were both suspended for two years. They owned and managed a law firm named Legal Helpers Debt Resolution and represented thousands of people in Illinois and throughout the country with consumer debt problems. Rather than perform legal services through their firm, they subcontracted the performance of nearly all services to non-lawyer debt settlement companies in other states. Non-lawyer employees for those companies regularly provided legal advice to clients and commonly answered client legal questions that arose.  Messrs. Macey and Aleman did not implement a meaningful system to supervise the non-lawyers to whom they delegated client matters. Consequently, they assisted in the unauthorized practice of law and systematically violated disciplinary rules requiring attorney consultation and communication with clients. The suspensions are effective on June 4, 2015.

• Jerold Wayne Barringer, Nokomis

Mr. Barringer, who was licensed in 1983, was suspended for six months and until further order of the Court. He repeatedly asserted frivolous issues in income tax-related federal litigation.

• Charles Augustus Boyle, Chicago

Mr. Boyle, who was licensed in 1966, was suspended for 60 days. While representing a client in a legal malpractice claim against another attorney, he misused $1,949.62 in settlement funds belonging to his client and/or Medicare. The suspension is effective on June 4, 2015.

• Patrick Steven Butler, Eureka, Mo.

Mr. Butler was licensed in Missouri in 1993 and in Illinois in 1994. The Supreme Court of Missouri suspended him indefinitely with no leave to apply for reinstatement for two years, with the entire suspension stayed by a two-year period of conditional probation. He commingled funds, failed to maintain complete records of his trust account and used fees which he had not yet earned. The Supreme Court of Illinois imposed reciprocal discipline and suspended him for two years, with the suspension stayed in its entirety by a two-year period of conditional probation, which has been satisfied.

• Thomas Andrew Dorsey, III, Springfield

Mr. Dorsey, who was licensed in 2003, was suspended for six months. He failed to diligently pursue pending civil litigation, missed numerous court hearings, did not respond to opposing counsel’s discovery requests and motions for summary judgment, and did not communicate with his client. The suspension is effective on June 4, 2015.

• Robert Vernon Elder, Sullivan

Mr. Elder, who was licensed in 1964, was suspended for 90 days for engaging in a conflict of interest in a probate matter. The suspension is effective on June 4, 2015.

• Andre Mandell Grant, Chicago

Mr. Grant, who was licensed in 1993, was suspended for 30 days. He did not timely file a supplemental record and a brief on behalf of a client in a criminal appeal, failed to inform that client of the status of the appeal, and failed to refund unearned fees to the client. The suspension is effective on June 4, 2015.

• Michael Louis Hill, Chicago

Mr. Hill, who was licensed in 1983, was suspended for four months and ordered to complete the ARDC Professionalism Seminar. He converted $4,312.31 of a client’s settlement funds for his own business and personal purposes. The suspension is effective on June 4, 2015.

• Raymond L. Huff, Peoria

Mr. Huff, who was licensed in 1973, was suspended for six months and until further order of the Court for neglecting two civil cases and making misrepresentations to his clients in those cases.

• William Edmund Kenny, Oak Brook

Mr. Kenny, who was licensed in 1974, was suspended for 60 days. Without authorization, he used a total of $1,916.31 that remained in his client trust account from checks that had not yet been presented for payment. He also failed to reduce a contingent fee agreement to writing in one of the matters. The suspension is effective on June 4, 2015.

• Pengtian Ma, Chicago

Mr. Ma, who was licensed in 1996, was suspended for 60 days. While representing his client in a lawsuit, he caused to be filed a complaint, amended complaint, and response to certain discovery containing statements that he knew to be false. In a separate matter, he notarized the signatures of two persons whom he had never met and who had not appeared before him. The suspension is effective on June 4, 2015.

• David Thomas Odom, Naperville

Mr. Odom, who was licensed in 1992, was suspended for 18 months and until further order of the Court. During a previous suspension from the practice of law for unrelated misconduct, he represented a client in a probate matter. He also made a false statement to the ARDC to impede its disciplinary investigation into his conduct.

• Sara Suzanne Ruff, Taylorville

Ms. Ruff, who was licensed in 2007, was suspended for one year and until further order of the Court and until she makes certain restitution. She was convicted in state court of possession of a controlled substance (heroin). In addition, she failed to repay unearned fees or costs to three different clients.

• Yvor Edouard Stoakley, Naperville

Mr. Stoakley, who was licensed in 1984, was suspended for nine months and until he makes certain restitution and successfully completes the ARDC Professionalism Seminar. He wrongfully obtained over $13,000 in funds from an elderly and infirm client. The suspension is effective on June 4, 2015.

CENSURED

• Dennis Cheng Fang, Bartlett

Mr. Fang, who was licensed in 1997, was censured. While representing a client in a lawsuit, he prepared and filed a response to discovery containing answers he knew to be false.

REPRIMAND

• Robert Rosenthal, Lake Oswego, Ore.

Mr. Rosenthal was licensed in Illinois in 1972 and in Oregon in 1973. The Supreme Court of the State of Oregon publicly reprimanded him for paying a female prostitute to engage in sexual conduct. The Supreme Court of Illinois imposed reciprocal discipline and reprimanded him.

The Following Orders were Entered by the Court Prior to the May 2015 Term but not Included in any Previous Information Release

• Joanne Marie Denison, Niles

Ms. Denison, who was licensed in 1986, was suspended on an interim basis and until further order of the Court. The ARDC Hearing Board recommended that she be suspended for three years and until further order of the Court for repeatedly making false statements concerning the integrity of judges and others in web blog postings about a guardianship case.

• George Nicolas Panagoulias, Des Plaines

Mr. Panagoulias, who was licensed in 2001, was suspended in 2013 for two years and until further order of the Court, with the suspension stayed in its entirety by a two-year period of conditional probation. He was convicted in Michigan of operating a vehicle while intoxicated and failing to report that conviction to the ARDC. Later, he was arrested in Illinois for operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated. Because he failed to comply with the terms of his probation, the stay of his suspension was revoked and he has now been suspended for two years and until further order of the Court.

• David Joseph Simard, Henderson, Nev.