Sullivan, In re, 3 Div. 277

• Decision Date: 30 January 1969
• Docket Number: 3 Div. 277
• Parties: In the Matter of Thomas W. SULLIVAN.
• Court: Alabama Supreme Court

Page 346

219 So.2d 346

283 Ala. 514

In the Matter of Thomas W. SULLIVAN.

3 Div. 277.

Supreme Court of Alabama.

Jan. 30, 1969.

Rehearing Denied March 6, 1969.

Fred Blanton, Birmingham, for petitioner.

Wm. H. Morrow, Jr., Montgomery, Gen. Counsel for Alabama State Bar.

PER CURIAM.

This is a review of an order or resolution of the Board of Commissioners of the Alabama State Bar finding Thomas W. Sullivan guilty of certain charges preferred against him and disbarring him as a practicing attorney at law.

As originally filed the complaint against Sullivan contained four charges. By subsequent amendments seven additional charges were added to the complaint.

Charge Eight was withdrawn, and resolutions of not guilty were entered by the Board of Commissioners as to charges one, two, three, four, ten, and eleven, and resolutions of guilty as to charges five, six, seven, and nine.

Charge Five accuses the petitioner of violation of Rule 25, Section A, of the Rules Governing the Conduct of all Persons admitted to the Practice of Law in the State of Alabama, in that in May or June 1962, the petitioner while serving as a referring or forwarding attorney, did in association with E. C. Boswell, submit to the Inferior Court of Geneva County, Alabama, a divorce case, namely Dominick Rugerrio v. Jean Rugerrio, Case No. A--256, wherein the bill of complaint and deposition of complainant represented to the court that the complainant was a bona fide resident of the State of Alabama, when in truth and in fact, the petitioner knew, or had reasonable cause to believe, that neither the complaint therein nor the respondent was a bona fide resident of the State of Alabama.

Rule 25, Section A, as amended, reads as follows:

'No person heretofore or hereafter admitted to practice law in Alabama shall

(a) knowingly or willfully make any false representations of fact to any judge court, or jury to induce a favorable action or ruling by either;

(b) File or prosecute or aid in the filing or prosecution of any suit, cross bill, or proceeding seeking a divorce in a Court in Alabama as attorney or solicitor for a complainant or cross complainant therein or serve as referring or forwarding attorney for such complainant or cross complainant with knowledge or reasonable cause to believe that neither party to such suit, cross bill, or proceeding is at the time of the filing of the bill of complaint or cross bill of complaint therein, a bona fide resident of the State of Alabama;

(c) While acting as attorney for either party in any suit for divorce in any Court in Alabama represent to the Court or conspire with any party, attorney, or person to represent to the Court that either party to such suit is a bona fide resident of Alabama, knowing such representation to be false.'

Charge Six charges petitioner by his acts in connection with the Rugerrio case, with violating Rule 16--A of the Rules Governing the Conduct of all Persons admitted to Practice in this State by introducing or offering to introduce testimony which he knew to be false or forged.

Charge Seven charges petitioner with conduct unbecoming an attorney in violation of Rule 36, Section A, as amended, governing the conduct of attorneys in Alabama.

Charge Nine is to the effect that on, to-wit, 27 December 1965, Mrs. Florence Nichols, then a resident of the State of Delaware, consulted with the petitioner in his office in Montgomery, Alabama, and was advised by petitioner that he could obtain an Alabama divorce for her within the near future. Mrs. Nichols thereupon paid petitioner $650.00 and then returned to Delaware. It is further charged that Mrs. Nichols has made numerous attempts to contact the petitioner by letter and telephone, and obtain information concerning her divorce; that a diligent search of the records of the Bureau of Vital Statistics of the State of Alabama, failed to disclose that petitioner has instituted any proceedings for divorce on behalf of Mrs. Nichols; that the petitioner's acceptance of a fee from Mrs. Nichols, and his assurance that he would institute and prosecute a divorce action in violation of Rule 25, Section A, as amended, of the Rules of Conduct governing Attorneys in this State, and his failure to respond to inquiries from Mrs. Nichols, constituted conduct unbecoming an attorney in violation of Rule 36, Section A, governing the conduct of attorneys in this state.

Evidence

Charges Five, Six, and Seven (Ruggerio Divorce).

Mrs. Jean Ruggerio testified by deposition taken at Berkeley Heights, New Jersey, that she was a life-long resident of New Jersey. She had married Dominic Ruggerio and for over ten years prior to 10 December 1963, they had resided at Stonehouse Road, Basking Ridge, New Jersey.

On 10 December 1963, Mr. Ruggerio told her he had some papers from Alabama and he wanted her to sign them. He stated he wanted to go to Alabama and get a divorce--that some of his friends had gone to Alabama and gotten a divorce in a matter of a week. Mr. Ruggerio further told her he had seen a doctor and made arrangements to take a two weeks sick leave to go to Alabama to get the divorce.

On the envelope in which the papers were sent was the name Sullivan, though she did not remember the first name.

That night (10 December 1963) she and Mr. Ruggerio went before Harold Thompson (shown by other papers to be a notary public), and she signed the papers. Mr. Ruggerio left their home that night.

About a week later Mr. Ruggerio called her at her mother's home. He said he was in Newark, and told her that things did not go in Alabama as he expected, and he wanted her to meet him at their home that night and talk things over. She went to their former home that night and Mr. ruggerio told her he wanted her to return home, forget about everything, and start all over. However, she thought it best that they stay apart for awhile.

On 1 April 1964, she called Mr. Ruggerio at their former home and a girl answered the phone. She asked what she was doing there and the girl told her she and Mr. Ruggerio planned to get married. She asked her how she could when she (Mrs. Ruggerio) had not divorced him.

She called Mr. Ruggerio at his place of employment but he had left to go home. He later called her at her mother's home, and then came there. He handed her a divorce decree stating it was as legal a divorce as she could get.

This decree was rendered by the Inferior Court of Geneva County on 18 January 1964, in the case of Dominic Ruggerio v. Jean Ruggerio, submitted on the complaint of Dominic Ruggerio, and the answer and waiver of Jean Ruggerio, together with an affidavit by Dominic Ruggerio to the effect that he was a bona fide resident of Montgomery, Alabama, residing at 100 Commerce Street, that Jean Ruggerio was a nonresident of Alabama and had voluntarily abandoned him in 1961.

Mr. E. C. Boswell, a practicing attorney in Geneva, Alabama, testified that the Ruggerio divorce case was forwarded to him by the petitioner. Dominic Ruggerio came to Geneva on 12 December 1963. The witness did not know how long Ruggerio had been in Geneva. Perhaps the petitioner came with him but he did not remember. Jean Ruggerio, to the witness' knowledge, did not come to Alabama. The witness represented Dominic Ruggerio in the divorce proceedings. Ruggerio made an affidavit stating he was a resident of Montgomery, Alabama, and that Jean Ruggerio, his wife, had voluntarily abandoned him on 7 June 1961. Other than the affidavit, the witness made no inquiry as to Ruggerio's residence. Ruggerio gave his testimony before the Register of the Inferior Court of Geneva County on 12 December 1963, and on 18 January 1964, the divorce decree was signed by the judge of said court. Mr. Boswell did not know how long Ruggerio remained in Geneva after appearing before the Register on 12 December 1963.

An affidavit of Judge William F. Thetford, Judge of the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit of Alabama (Montgomery County), was received in evidence. Judge Thetford deposes that he has been such judge since 1 November 1963, specifically assigned to hear domestic relations matters, including divorces. Continuously during his tenure the court dockets of said court have been current as to the processing of uncontested divorce cases. In proceedings involving a legitimate uncontested divorce, no more than a few hours, or at most one or two days, is required for disposition of such case.

Charge Nine (Nichols Matter)

Mrs. Florence Nichols, formerly Mrs. Florence Forcelli, testified before Maultsby Waller, the Commissioner appointed to take testimony upon the charges against the petitioner, that she first became acquainted with petitioner in February 1961, when she came to Alabama to get a divorce. She was then living in Danbury, Connecticut. On this occasion she was accompanied by Mr. Nichols. She and Nichols went to petitioner's office and she signed some papers. She returned to Connecticut and in April 1961, received from petitioner a copy of the decree divorcing her from Forcelli. Two weeks later she and Nichols were married.

In 1965, Mrs. Nichols had separated from Mr. Nichols and was living in Wilmington, Delaware. In the first part of December 1965, she telephoned petitioner, identified herself as having been Mrs. Forcelli and told petitioner she wanted to come to Alabama and get a divorce. Petitioner told her he would send her some papers in blank for Mr. Nichols to sign before a notary, and that his fee would be $650.00. She received the papers from petitioner and Nichols signed them before a notary public and returned them to her. She was supposed to mail the papers to petitioner who instructed her he would tell her when to come to Alabama.

However, Mrs. Nichols learned that some friends were driving to Tallassee, Alabama, on 24 December 1965, and she decided to ride down with them.

On 26 December 1965, she drove to Montgomery and called petitioner, telling him she had the executed papers, and the...