In re Beck, Appellate Case No. 2014–001912.
Decision Date | 10 June 2015 |
Docket Number | Appellate Case No. 2014–001912.,No. 27529.,27529. |
Citation | 773 S.E.2d 576,412 S.C. 585 |
Court | South Carolina Supreme Court |
Parties | In the Matter of Daniel A. BECK, Respondent. |
Lesley M. Coggiola, Disciplinary Counsel, and Barbara Seymour, Deputy Disciplinary Counsel, both of Columbia, for Office of Disciplinary Counsel.
James K. Holmes, of The Steinberg Law Firm, LLP, of Charleston, for respondent.
Respondent self-reported misuse of his trust account. He and the Office of Disciplinary Counsel (ODC) stipulated the facts, and at the Panel Hearing the sole issue was the appropriate sanction. The Panel found that mitigating factors outweighed aggravating factors, and recommended Respondent be suspended for three years, retroactive to the date he was indefinitely suspended,1 and that several other conditions be imposed.2 ODC has taken exception to the three-year suspension recommendation, and contends that disbarment, retroactive to September 2, 2011, is the appropriate sanction. We agree with ODC, and disbar Respondent retroactive to September 2, 2011. Further, we impose the additional conditions recommended by the Panel.
The Panel found these aggravating factors:
The Panel found the following matters mitigated Respondent's conduct:
While the Panel recognized “disbarment would seem to be the most appropriate sanction,” it recommended a three-year retroactive suspension based in part on the mitigating factors, and in part on its belief that a lesser sanction will provide an incentive for lawyers to self-report.
The authority to discipline lawyers and the manner in which discipline is imposed is a matter within the Court's discretion. In re Jardine, 410 S.C. 369, 764 S.E.2d 924 (2014). Like the Panel, we are moved by the depth and sincerity of Respondent's remorse and...
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...of using money that was not his from his trust account, and we conclude this misconduct warrants disbarment. See In re Beck , 412 S.C. 585, 587, 773 S.E.2d 576, 577 (2015) (disbarring an attorney who, for approximately eleven years, used funds from his trust account for purposes for which t......