Vrdolyak, In re

• Decision Date: 30 May 1990
• Docket Number: No. 68665,68665
• Citation: 560 N.E.2d 840,148 Ill.Dec. 243,137 Ill.2d 407
• Parties: , 148 Ill.Dec. 243 In re Edward Robert VRDOLYAK, Attorney, Respondent.
• Court: Illinois Supreme Court

Page 840

560 N.E.2d 840

137 Ill.2d 407, 148 Ill.Dec. 243

In re Edward Robert VRDOLYAK, Attorney, Respondent.

No. 68665.

Supreme Court of Illinois.

May 30, 1990.

As Modified on Denial of Rehearing Oct. 1, 1990.

[137 Ill.2d 412] [148 Ill.Dec. 244] James J. Grogan, Chicago, for the Administrator of the Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Com'n.

William J. Harte, Ltd., Chicago (William J. Harte and David J. Walker, of counsel), for respondent.

PER CURIAM:

On March 17, 1987, the Administrator (Administrator) of the Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission (ARDC) filed a two-count complaint charging respondent, Edward Robert Vrdolyak, with various infractions of the Code of Professional Responsibility (Code) (107 Ill.2d R. 1-101 et seq.). The two counts involve wholly unrelated activities. Count I pertains to respondent's representation of city employees in workers' compensation claims against the City of Chicago (City) while simultaneously serving as an alderman in the Chicago city council (council). Count II concerns the commingling and conversion of a client's funds and respondent's failure to enter into a written contingent fee agreement with that client.

On count I, the Hearing Board found that respondent's dual roles--alderman and attorney--created a conflict of interest which gave rise to an "inference of impropriety." The Hearing Board reasoned that the public could have been misled into believing that respondent, because of his position as an alderman, had a "competitive advantage" in representing city employees before the Industrial Commission. With respect to count II, the Hearing Board found that respondent had failed to properly handle the client's funds, but that failure was due to an "honest mistake of fact." The Hearing Board found, however, that there was no justification for respondent's failure to execute a written contingent fee agreement with that client. The Hearing Board recommended that respondent be censured on the charges contained in count I and reprimanded for failing to have a written contingent fee contract under count II, and that the remaining charges in count II be dismissed.

Respondent filed exceptions to the Hearing Board's report with the Review Board. (107 Ill.2d R. 753(e)(1).) The Review Board agreed with parts of the Hearing Board report, but rejected its recommendations and concluded that all of the charges against respondent should be dismissed. The Administrator petitioned this court for leave to file exceptions to the Review Board's report and recommendations (107 Ill.2d R. 753(e)(6)).

The issues raised in this appeal are: (1) whether respondent engaged in unethical conduct by representing city employees in workers' compensation claims against the City while he was a city alderman; and (2) whether respondent should be sanctioned for the unintentional commingling and conversion of client funds and for failing to enter into a written contingent fee agreement with the client.

FACTS

The stipulated facts reveal that respondent was admitted to the Illinois bar in May 1963. He started as a sole practitioner, but in 1966 or 1967 began hiring associates to assist him in his general practice, which included an emphasis in personal injury, workers' compensation and criminal cases. Around 1987, he incorporated his law business under the firm name of "Edward R. Vrdolyak, Ltd., P.C.," in which he was the sole shareholder. (See 107 Ill.2d R. 721.) At the time of the ARDC complaint, the firm had three offices in Cook County and 12 associates. Since his admission to the bar, respondent had never before been the subject of any disciplinary proceedings.

The facts relating to count I are as follows. Respondent served as the elected Tenth Ward alderman in the council from February 1971 through April 1987, for which he was compensated with public funds. Respondent was a member of various council committees, including the committee on finance. The committee on finance had responsibility for municipal legislation involving the City's financial and budgetary affairs. Respondent was also a member of the committee on claims and liabilities, originally a subcommittee of the finance committee. The claims committee authorized the payment of money damages awards resulting from civil tort or contract claims against the City, but its jurisdiction did not extend to authorizing payment of workers' compensation benefits. Instead, a separate body, the bureau of workmen's compensation (Bureau), was responsible for recommending the payment of workers' compensation benefits to employees who were entitled to them under the Workers' Compensation Act. The Bureau's members were appointed by the chairman of the committee on finance, to whom the Bureau made its recommendations. According to the stipulated facts, however, respondent believed that workers' compensation claims required the approval of the council after a review by the committee on claims and liabilities. Relying on this belief, respondent sent letters to the corporation counsel, city clerk, and chairman of the committee on finance stating that he did not want to be recorded as voting on any workers' compensation or personal injury claims.

Funding for municipal operations, including council bureaus and committees, payment of claims and employee salaries, is appropriated from the City's budget. That budget is prepared by the City's executive branch and adopted by the council, as the City's legislative branch.

Respondent, as an alderman, participated in the annual budget process--from hearings to voting on the adoption of the budget. As an alderman, he was also involved in approving mayoral appointments, including city department heads and commissioners of various independent and autonomous municipal corporations.

From January 1977 through January 1986, respondent or associates employed by his firm appeared as counsel of record in 35 workers' compensation cases against the City. These were matters pending before the Industrial Commission, a State agency. If a city employee filed a workers' compensation petition with the Industrial Commission, an assistant corporation counsel from the City's department of law would be assigned to file an appearance on behalf of the City. Each case would result either in a settlement or arbitration, and the majority of cases handled by respondent resulted in settlement. The proposed settlement or arbitration award was then submitted to the Industrial Commission for its approval.

The parties also agree that: respondent did not vote on personal injury or workers' compensation claims against the City; respondent was never the chairman of the committee on finance; and from 1977 through 1985, respondent or associates employed by his firm appeared as counsel of record in 44 workers' compensation cases filed against other independent municipal corporations--such as the Chicago Park District, Chicago Transit Authority and Chicago Board of Education.

The facts relating to count II are as follows. In April 1981, respondent's firm was retained by a private party to act as his attorney in an action against a former roommate. The firm was given $300 as a retainer. A suit was filed and, in August 1981, a $5,000 default judgment was entered in favor of the client. In June 1982, another associate employed by the firm entered into an oral fee agreement with the client wherein the client agreed to pay the firm one-third of any money recovered on the judgment. No contingent fee agreement was executed. The associate obtained a wage-deduction order against the roommate's employer and, in December 1982, the employer sent respondent's firm a check in conformance with the wage-deduction order. That check was deposited into the firm's client trust fund account. During 1983, the employer sent other checks in varying amounts to the firm, some of which were deposited into the firm's operating account. Of the 10 checks sent by the employer, two were deposited into the firm's client trust fund account while eight were deposited into its general operating account. The firm's operating account was occasionally overdrawn during this time period.

Some time later, the client filed a complaint with the ARDC. When the respondent received the complaint he had his staff reconstruct the events. It was determined that the funds had been deposited into the firm's operating account because the firm's office manager, upon receiving the funds, contacted the secretary of the associate assigned the case and was told the funds were "for costs." The office manager then deposited the funds in the operating account, not the escrow account.

Respondent had delegated bookkeeping functions and clerical supervision to the office manager, a nonlawyer. This is the only known occurrence of client funds being deposited into the firm's operating account, and respondent has repeatedly instructed his staff to guard against such future errors. Moreover, respondent had no personal or independent knowledge of the misapplication of the client's funds or the lack of a written contingent fee agreement. Additionally, respondent immediately made full restitution to the client.

COUNT I

Did respondent engage in unethical conduct by representing city employees in workers' compensation claims against the City while serving as an alderman?

The Administrator maintains that respondent violated Disciplinary Rule (DR) 1-102(a)(5) (engaging in conduct prejudicial to the administration of justice); DR 5-101(a) (accepting employment where the exercise of his professional judgment on behalf of a client may be affected by his own interests); DR 8-101(a)(1) (using his public position to obtain a special advantage in a legislative matter for a client); DR 8-101(a)(2) (using his public position to influence a tribunal to act in favor of his client); DR 8-101(a)(4) (representing a client in matters pending before the public body of which he is a member); and Canon 9 ...