Louisiana State Bar Ass'n v. Woods

Citation243 La. 94,141 So.2d 828
Decision Date04 June 1962
Docket NumberNo. 45832,45832
PartiesLOUISIANA STATE BAR ASSOCIATION v. George O. WOODS.
CourtSupreme Court of Louisiana

Committee on Professional Ethics and Grievances, Louisiana State Bar Assn., Bascom D. Talley, Jr., Vice-Chairman, Trial Council, Bogalusa, John Pat Little, Chairman, Pat W. Browne, Sr., New Orleans, A. K. Goff, Jr., Ruston, Walter G. Arnette, Jennings, for petitioner.

George O. Woods, New Orleans, in pro. per.

McCALEB, Justice.

Louisiana State Bar Association, appearing through the Committee on Professional Ethics and Grievances, seeks the disbarment of George O. Woods, an attorney of the Bar of this State, charging him with unethical practices and other acts of misconduct.

Upon joinder of issue, this Court, acting conformably with the provisions of Sections 7, 8 and 9 of Article XIII of the Articles of Incorporation of the Louisiana Bar Association, appointed a Commissioner, Mr. Howard W. Lenfant, an attorney of the New Orleans Bar, to take evidence and report his findings of fact and conclusions of law.

Following a hearing on the ten specifications stated by the Committee, the Commissioner reported his findings to this Court in which he concludes that respondent is guilty on six of the ten specifications and recommends that he be disbarred. Respondent did not except to the report within twenty days from the time of its filing and, therefore, the Commissioner's findings of fact and conclusions of law stand confirmed and have become final as to him. See Section 9 of Article XIII of the Articles of Incorporation of the Louisiana State Bar Association. However, the Committee has timely excepted to the report as to two of the four specifications that the Commissioner recommends be dismissed.

The six specifications upon which the Commissioner has based his recommendations for disbarment set forth acts by the respondent involving, in the main, the commingling of funds belonging to his clients with his own; use of his clients' funds for his own purposes; making false representations to obtain money, issuing worthless checks and gross neglect of his clients' interests.

The evidence taken in the case fully supports the Commissioner's findings on these six specifications and we are in complete agreement with the Commissioner that the respondent's habitual and total disregard of his obligations to his clients renders him unfit to continue in the practice of law. 1

Since we are of the view that respondent should...

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8 cases
  • Louisiana State Bar Ass'n v. Edwins
    • United States
    • Louisiana Supreme Court
    • 23 Febrero 1976
    ...148 So.2d 597 (1963); Louisiana State Bar Association v. Wheeler, 243 La. 618, 145 So.2d 774 (1962), and Louisiana State Bar Association v. Woods, 243 La. 94, 141 So.2d 828 (1962). However, as these decisions recognize, the ultimate responsibility as to the discipline warranted by the facts......
  • Louisiana State Bar Ass'n v. Klein
    • United States
    • Louisiana Supreme Court
    • 20 Enero 1969
    ... ... Haylon, 250 La. 651, 198 So.2d 391; Louisiana State Bar ... Association v. Woods, 243 La. 94, 141 So.2d[253 La. 605] 828; Louisiana State Bar Association v. Yoder, 243 La. 909, 148 So.2d 597; Louisiana State Bar Association v ... ...
  • Louisiana State Bar Ass'n v. Wheeler
    • United States
    • Louisiana Supreme Court
    • 3 Octubre 1962
    ... ... 1037, 13 So.2d 341; Louisiana State Bar Association v. Steiner, 204 La. 1073, 16 So.2d 843; and Louisiana State Bar Association v. Woods, La., 141 So.2d 828. (The emphasis has been supplied.) ...         It necessarily follows, therefore, that the commissioner's ... ...
  • Louisiana State Bar Ass'n v. Haack
    • United States
    • Louisiana Supreme Court
    • 18 Febrero 1963
    ...La. 649, 116 So.2d 281 (1959), Louisiana State Bar Association v. Cohen, 242 La. 838, 138 So.2d 594 (1962), Louisiana State Bar Association v. Woods, 243 La. 94, 141 So.2d 828 (1962), and Louisiana State Bar Association v. Wheeler, 243 La. 618, 145 So.2d 774 (1962). (In the Pitcher and Cohe......
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