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45 Times People Did Shady And Unethical Things To Try To Win A Case
Going to court can be stressful, right, pandas? A lot is at stake, and naturally, everyone wants the outcome to go in their favor. But while most people try to make their case and hope for the best, some are willing to bend the rules, twist the truth, or do just about anything to win. And honestly, some of what people come up with is pretty unbelievable!
We came across an online discussion where lawyers shared some of the most unethical things they've seen people do to win lawsuits. From outright lies to some seriously questionable tactics, these legal professionals have witnessed quite a bit over the years. We've rounded up some of their most surprising stories for you, so keep scrolling to see just how far some people will go to win a case!
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
I started out working for a commercial law firm advising companies on environmental compliance. We had a client who was a large oil and gas distributor which owned a contaminated site in a populated area.
My boss advised the client to transfer ownership of the site to a newly incorporated limited liability company with no assets. That way, when the government ordered the site to be remediated, the client wouldn't be liable for the clean-up.
I left not too long after that.
EDIT: I'm not based in the United States - yes, lawyers exist in other countries too.
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#2
Obligatory "not a lawyer", but my parents got caught up in a slimy lawyer's talons.
Basically, they had carpet installed in their house in 2005, paid in cash, got a receipt, and went on with their lives.
7 years later, they get a letter from some law firm saying the company they'd had install their carpet never received payment and would press charges if they didn't pay up. My dad, being a paranoid person, had kept the receipt and said he'd see them in court. He did some research, found out what the attorney can and can't do in this situation, and also found out that the attorney had been working with the flooring company for years, accusing paying customers of not paying and collecting excess money from them under threat of lawsuit.
Fast-forward to the court date. Dad shows up knowing his rights, with the receipt stating exactly how much he paid and when. Attorney has nothing except a copy of the invoice for my dad's payment that he leaves in his folder the whole time. Not only does the attorney break almost every rule of court possible, he completely slanders my dad. Calling him "sketchy looking" and "dishonest" even though the receipt is literally right there in front of him, insists that the receipt is fake despite having a copy of the invoice.
My dad lost that case. Before anyone had even left the courtroom, the attorney walked up to chat with the judge, who asked if they were still on for brunch tomorrow. Because it was a super small circuit, this dude had been able to buddy up to a judge to the extent he was allowed to do basically whatever he wanted and still win his cases.
A year later my parents sued the attorney for misconduct and requested an out-of-circuit judge, who essentially told that slimy schmuck to sit down and shut up when he tried to pull something against the rules. They won that case.
#3
When I was working as a public defender in the Detroit state court I ROUTINELY saw cops lie about the existence of video recordings of an event. The law says they have to have the cams running when they make a stop, but in all the cases I saw not a single cop was ever able to produce a video. Either the video had “malfunctioned,” been “accidentally deleted” after the event, or the camera was “broken.”
It was a weird place to work. The cops very much viewed the defense lawyers and the legal process as their enemy. I’m sure there were a lot of unjust outcomes as a result.
If you've ever read about a major lawsuit in the news or come across a high-profile legal case in a book, you probably know how complicated things can get. From serious allegations to lengthy court proceedings and huge financial settlements, a lot is often at stake for everyone involved. But while we hear about the big cases, we don't always understand how the legal process actually works. So, since today's collection revolves around lawsuits, let's take a closer look at what they involve.
#4
Criminal defendants charged with stealing an item must be charged with stealing an item FROM someone. That someone must be a legal entity.
I once represented a guy who was charged with stealing dog food. He was homeless and trying to feed his dog. Needless to say, I was sympathetic, so I was willing to pull something of a dirty trick for him.
I queued him up for trial. As soon as the first witness was sworn in, I moved to dismiss. The entity he was charged with stealing from? “Wal Mart.” That is not a legal entity. I think the real name was Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. or something.
Case immediately dismissed. Since a witness had been sworn in, double jeopardy prevented them from trying him again.
#5
Mom had her 7 year old daughter lie on the stand. Mother claimed bodily injuries from a motor vehicle accident. She forced her 7 year old daughter to testify at trial. The mother coached the daughter to say that the mother was in the car at the time of the accident. It became very apparent that the mother was not in the car at the time of the accident because the mother couldn’t recall where the accident occurred or which parts of the vehicles were damaged.
#6
I got the physical evidence thrown out because the officer reached into my client's pocket before patting the outside first. Because that the was the only evidence that my client committed a crime, the prosecutor was forced to dismiss the entire case.
For starters, the American legal system generally distinguishes between civil and criminal cases. Criminal cases involve the government prosecuting someone accused of breaking the law, while civil lawsuits usually deal with disputes between individuals, businesses, or other parties. According to the United States Courts, a civil lawsuit typically begins when someone, known as the plaintiff, files a complaint against another party, called the defendant.
And what's the goal? Well, unlike criminal cases, which can result in imprisonment, civil lawsuits generally aim to resolve disputes or compensate someone for harm they've suffered. A successful case might result in financial compensation or a court order requiring someone to do or stop doing something. Interestingly, many lawsuits never even make it to trial because the parties reach an agreement outside the courtroom.
#7
I knew of a criminal defense attorney that had a slight foreign accent. When he had a lost cause of a case, in court he would sometimes play up the accent heavily, pretend to understand less English than he really did, generally play dumb, etc. This was juxtaposed with one of the best prosecutor offices in the country who were all very polished. His hope was the jury might feel sorry for his client and acquit him even if they thought he was guilty because it felt like he never had a fair shot.
It was a fine line to walk to do that and not piss off the judge though lol.
#8
From LegalEagle, more a grievous malpractice:
Some lawyers tried to use ChatGPT to write their brief.
The language model hallucinated and invented court cases and references. They filed it anyway.
Opposing party candidly asked the judge:
"We don’t seem to be able to find the mentioned cases in any of the legal databases. Could they please provide sources?"
Judge frowned.
Lawyers sweated, tried to play dumb and asked for time while they used again ChatGPT to write the fake cases.
Judge was not amused.
They got only fined and humiliated.
Cerulean 7 hours ago
Saw US example of this in media couple years ago. Lawyer told judge he asked ChatGPT to confirm the cases cited in the brief it had written for him were real. "Oh yes!" it said, with that inimitable confidence and cheeriness. Happening elsewhere too, entirely hallucinated precedents.
#9
I went to court and watched my lawyer boldly lie... He asked me something before going in that I confirmed and stated the exact opposite to the judges face. When we were leaving a couple other lawyers complimented him on his speech. Most of them lie and everyone knows it... Whoever is the better lier often wins and it is acceptable which is a bit of a loophole if you ask me.
Now, there are plenty of reasons someone might file a lawsuit. Think about car accidents, medical negligence, or a business failing to honor a contract. Workplace disputes involving discrimination or wrongful termination, along with defamation cases where someone's reputation has allegedly been damaged by false statements, are another common area. And that's just the beginning! Legal disputes can also involve stolen creative work, copyright infringement, property disagreements, divorce, or child custody. So, while we often associate lawsuits with huge companies or wealthy celebrities, ordinary people can find themselves involved in legal battles, too.
#10
I recently overheard the lawyer I work for tell someone to try to get her husband to hit her again in order for her to file a TRO against him, and make their case stronger. I was speechless.
#11
For a year I worked for the most unethical attorney I have ever met. Here are my top two stories:
He took on a client that was injured at work. Since the attorney normally does defense work, the doctor came back saying the injury was clearly not work related. The attorney called the doctor to inform him that he represented the employee and not the employer in this case. The doctor then wrote a report that the injury was clearly work related.
One afternoon the attorney's assistant ran into my room and said I need to go the courthouse right now to defend the attorney in a traffic case. Attorney told me he had no run-ins with law enforcement before, had never been ticketed before, and would just like to get supervision. I go in front of the judge and present this information and I get him supervision. I go back to the office and curiosity got the best of me. I searched his criminal record. Yeah, turns out he had another outstanding speeding ticket and you could see his mugshot for domestic violence.
Oh, and he tried to fine me $5,000 for going to a doctor's appointment on my lunch break. Yup at that point I literally walked out.
#12
A friend of a friend woke up in a hospital. He has no idea what happened but he was brought out of an induced coma from a bike wreck. The car he ended up under was owned by a lawyer. The lawyer and a cop forced the doctors to get the guy out of a coma long enough to sign a statement when no family was present. The lawyer never mentioned to the doctor that it was he who was driving and not a person he represented. The lawyer then went on the sue for damages on his car by the guy and his bicycle.
And just to give you an idea of how widespread litigation is in the United States, a 2022 article by Munich Re cited an estimate of approximately 40 million lawsuits filed across the country each year. The article also reported that large American companies spent around $22.8 billion on litigation in 2020, citing Statista. That's quite a lot of money going toward legal disputes!
#13
The prosecution (state) asked for a continuance (more time to prepare their case) and the judge denied it. So they just dropped all charges and then refiled them the next day to get around the judge’s decision. Nothing anybody could do about it.
#14
I racked up parking tickets in law school, only to find out that the district had changed but the signs were never removed. The street behind the school was in a different district-one with no time limit on parking. The neighbors didn’t want students parking for hours on end so they treated it as de facto timed parking.
I defeated the tickets but only after the contentious hearing where the hearing office asked me why I thought it was ok to park wherever I wanted despite the signs. I said the signs don’t matter if they’re not legal and he said enforcement (meter maids) go by the signs, not the map. I asked if I could just put up signs wherever I wanted to not have people park and they would enforce it? He didn’t have answer for that one…
It really bothered me that the school made a big deal about getting a dispensation on parking time during exams, because the exams were an hour longer than you could park.
#15
I got in a no injury car accident, gave the cops my insurance which had both my name and my dad's name. I'm a male with a name that is normally a females name. Cop wrote the ticket to my dad because he assumed who I was by names on the insurance. When I went to court to pay the fine, the judge told me I couldn't represent my dad. When I explained that he was living very far away from the accident and I was the driver, the judge said well you have no ticket, and your dad obviously wasn't the driver, so case dismissed.
But here's where things get particularly interesting. Some lawsuits result in extraordinarily large payouts, sometimes referred to as nuclear verdicts. These are jury awards worth $10 million or more. According to a 2022 report by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Institute for Legal Reform, the median nuclear verdict increased from $19.3 million in 2010 to $24.6 million in 2019. That's a rise of 27.5% over the period studied.
#16
Heard of at least one case where the defendant was charged with carrying a loaded firearm without a license, but the count had to be dismissed because it turns out the idiot had loaded it with the wrong caliber bullet. The police lab tried repeatedly to get the gun to fire in the range using the defendant's bullets, but even they couldn't make it work. So technically the firearm didn't count as "loaded" under the statute. It wasn't quite case dismissed, because there was a lesser charge that still applied to an unloaded firearm, but it was a much less severe charge.
Not sure if that's a "loophole," but it's one of the funnier and more harmless get-out-of-jail-free cards I've seen.
#17
Convicted criminal was on furlough. A program with the jail where you can be released on an ankle monitor while still serving your sentence. He cut the monitor, ran and was caught. Indicted for Escape.
Case gets to trial and the prosecutor puts on a pretty straightforward case. people from the jail and ankle monitor company and arresting cops testify. Then the defense moves to dismiss. Prosecution has failed to prove escape.
There was actually a different law called unlawful evasion that applied to escaping off furlough program. this was extra confusing because escape is the correct charge for cutting an ankle monitor if you are serving your sentence on ankle monitor. Which you can do sometimes. But if you start in jail and get out on an ankle monitor as part of a furlough program then the crime is unlawful evasion.
Prosecutor was furious. Because the defense could have dismissed the case at any point. Arraignment up to trial. But he never said anything. So the guy sat in jail for months awaiting trial on a charge he could get dismissed. Judge ordered the case dismissed.
There was some small debate about whether he could be retried or not, because did double jeopardy attach if he was never actually charged with the right crime? But the DA wasn’t going to highlight the embarrassment and just let it go. A crime (and slam dunk case) with a 6+ year sentence dismissed for a few months in jail.
#18
Not me, but a professor I had, who specialized on advocacy for victims of human trafficking (basically, helping victims of trafficking avoid deportation).
A salon was raided in connection to a suspected human trafficking ring. The tip turned out to be good, multiple people were arrested, and several victims were taken into custody.
Among them was a 4 year old boy. None of the victims knew him, "he helped clean the salon." Traffickers wouldn't fess up as to where he came from. The kid didn't know his own name, where he was from, where his parents were, or where they were. When the judge asked the kid for his name, he replied "Spiderman!" When they asked for his real name, he told them "Peter Parker!" Yeah, you get the idea.... anyway, prosecution wanted him gone because he was in the US illegally. Not sure where prosecution thought he'd get sent, but whatever.
Now here's a neat thing.... there's a federal statute on refugee eligibility. This particular statute hadn't been cited in over 60 years, but for all intents and purposes was still good law. The statute on question basically says, "if a victim of human trafficking is an unaccompanied minor is under X age and does not know their country of origin, they are to be granted asylum immediately, no court discretion." Now I have to emphasize, this law hadn't been used in literal DECADES, and was effectively forgotten by courts and legislature as a past relic that somehow slipped through immigration reforms over the years. But it was still valid.
My professor intended to cite this statute. The prosecutor was terrified of creating new case law, and offered to drop charges if this statute wouldn't get brought up. Professor agreed, bc client's interests.
In a strange twist of fate, the prosecutor passed away, and the newly assigned prosecutor said he would not honor any preexisting deals. Prof is like, "fine, let's make some case law!" New prosecutor panics and asks to go back to the original deal, which is accepted.
Of course, a large payout doesn't automatically mean someone has done anything dishonest. Some cases involve devastating injuries, serious negligence, or enormous financial losses. And when the cost of living and medical treatment increases, the amount needed to compensate someone for their losses can increase, too.
Maura Haynes, then head of casualty at Munich Re US, discussed this in the company's article. She explained how rising medical expenses and inflation could influence the compensation juries consider appropriate. At the same time, larger verdicts can create financial challenges for businesses and insurance companies.
#19
My grandpa was a lawyer for an oil company a few decades ago. They had a huge federal case one time, and he simply went up to the judges and told them they didn't have jurisdiction. The oil was drilled in Texas and refined in Texas, had never left the state of Texas. So there was no interstate commerce, and the federal court had no jurisdiction. He got the case thrown out "on bonk".
#20
My psychologist told me about the time He and one of the most "powerful " lawyers in town were in court.
The opposing lawyer was even more of a jerk than this guy. He had to find a crack in his armor. So upon the opposing lawyer opening his briefcase, lawyer #1 notices it was full of shoe shine stuff. The guy is obsessed with his shoes.
Before the trial, lawyer #1 greets the opposing lawyer, and while shaking hands,he "accidentally " stepped on his foot.
Shrink said he never had to try so hard not to erupt in laughter in court.
Opposing lawyer was so flustered because the trial had started,and he couldn't shine his shoes, that he lost the case.
Lawyer #1's son is my current attorney.
#21
IANAL
But a man who was a customer for the construction company I worked for at the time was a real piece of work.
What hurricane sandy hit, I tree fell over and hit into his sons room and made a hole in the ceiling. He then decided for the family to take a vacation after the storm and to let the hole and tree be...for a bit more than a month. This way there was massive amounts of water damage and the houses got to be labeled as unlivable.
He did this so that not only could he collect massive amounts of money from the insurance and from the government, but to also turn around and sue them for much more money. He got all that money. He had his old house torn down and hired my company to build his brand new state of the art mansion that he planned.
What the company didn't know is that this guy was a serial lawsuit filer. He sues everyone all the time. He had a decent paying job but he makes the bulk of his money more from lawsuits it seems. He sued the bank once for a misfiling and somehow got tons of money from that. He then turned around and sued the lawyer he had for that bank case for not getting him as much money as he wanted. He won that one too somehow.
the project ended up being a nightmare, he had two people who were not licensed architects writing up his blueprints and getting them stamped by a sloppy licensed architect that didn't review the blue prints (prob so he could sue later. and when I say sloppy, the head of my company had to point out how the roof was sticking into the body of the garage and how the steps didn't match up and make it to the different floors, ect. and then give it back to the customer to have them redo it all (multiple times)). Customer also would not contact the plumber in time to do the work on the days needed to there were many wasted days, customer would not pay any of the bills on time when they were due, and we then found out later that they were taking doctored pictures the whole time of the property when company was not one the scene at the time and calling the town for trash complaints (complaining about wood, pipes, metal, and other materials sitting in back of property and on sides, not real trash) on his own plot of land during construction so that he could sue us later on.
As the job was starting to finish up, it was about 6 months behind schedule due to all these problems and more that were outside of our control. The head of the company I was with was going to a European country for a wedding of their nephew and that was prefaced and known before the project was accepted. When they left for said wedding, customer tried to directly contract one of the subcontractors to take over and do the whole project (illegal and written as forbidden to even talk prices of anything in contract with subcontractor), and put into motion the whole bologna lawsuit against our company.
Unfortunately the company I was with came back to pure hell and arguments and then pulled out of the project and planned to sue the customer when he refused to pay his next installment and the installment that had been overdue by a month. Left the house in a terrible limbo for a while since no one else could work with the licensed new material my company was using on his home. On top of that, the lawyer that our company hired to sue the customer went AWOL and they had to find a new lawyer that did nothing for months. So instead they got paper work in the mail telling them that the customer was suing them for breaking contract (not true and the other way around). This lead to the new business partner screwing over the Head of the company and stealing money from the joint accounts as they ran away. Ultimately leading to the head of the construction company closing down their business/HOC's life work, from all the lost money.
They never got to counter sue to customer and the customer had to drop the case because they really didn't have anything. In the end though, they got to have half of their new mansion built for 1/16 of the price before getting someone new to finish it up and they screwed an honest company out of business.
TLDR: Fraudulent customer is a serial lawsuiter and forces head of company to lose nearly everything.
In fact, some companies and insurers have even started using mock juries to understand how their legal arguments might be received in court. These practice sessions can help them spot weaknesses in their cases and decide whether settling might be a better option than going to trial. After all, legal battles can be expensive, unpredictable, and stressful for everyone involved.
#22
Not a lawyer, but close to one. In law school in Finland, they were taught about a case where a man was on trial for failing to pay back a loan.
His lawyer argued that he shouldn’t be convicted of delinquency (no idea what the actual terms are in English, bear with me) because he never had intended to pay the loan back in the first place.
And he won the case.
The reason was because the prosecutor had made a mistake: he had prosecuted the man only for the lesser charge of being delinquent in making payments, and forgot to write up the alternative charge of outright fraud.
So the court had to rule that there was reasonable doubt whether the man actually committed the act he was on trial for.
#23
Not a lawyer, but in my court case my attacker talked and talked and talked for over 36 hours combined until the judge was just fed up and dismissed it all. So, I guess if you just make the judge bored enough, you win.
#24
My client was pulled over for DUI at which point the police officers realized his registration had also expired. They wrote two tickets to him, one for each fellony. However, they’ve put 3:01 AM on the registration expiration ticket on which they also noted they had to forbid him to use this car further and 3:02 AM on the DUI ticket. I argued that he couldn’t have driven a car drunk at 3:02 because he and his car were not on the road since 3:01. He was cleared of the DUI charge (much bigger issue than registration expiration).
But beyond all the money, complicated procedures, and courtroom arguments, there's something worth remembering. Lawsuits are supposed to provide people with a fair way to resolve disputes and seek justice. Whether someone is fighting for compensation after an injury or defending themselves against an accusation, honesty and evidence should matter more than who can play the dirtiest tricks.
#25
Lawyer asked me to charge a prospective client extra because of their accent. For both our sakes I ignored him.
#26
In the 80s my boss's best friend did major mortgage fraud. He was a RE attorney. He wasn't paying off mortgages but was pocketing the money and making the monthly payments. It all blew up when someone tried to buy a new home and the old mortgage was on his credit. Guy ran, left the country, leaving his wife and kids behind. He was never caught.
#27
Use the office to host his Pro-Life meetings and place an anti-euthanisa billboard on the building.
And that brings us back to today's collection, pandas. The lawyers featured in these stories have witnessed some people go to extraordinary lengths to get the outcome they wanted, even when it meant crossing serious ethical boundaries. It's unsettling to think someone might resort to dishonesty or manipulation in a process meant to establish the truth.
So, what do you think? Have you ever heard of someone doing something completely unethical to win a legal dispute? And which of these lawyers' experiences surprised you the most? Let us know in the comments below!
#28
IANAL but two come to mind.
For a period of time in my state if you got a speeding ticket you could have a hearing and request the radar technician to testify that the equipment had been calibrated correctly. Given that there were only two technicians qualified in the state they basically never showed up, and the ticket would get thrown out.
Another - a local cop got charged for catching the wrong size fish, basically poaching. Since he lied to the game officer in his statement, all prior convictions that relied on his testimony became easy appeal cases.
#29
Marvel successfully argued that mutants are not people so X-men action figures get a cheaper tariff.
#30
I am a lawyer. I specialize in tax and litigation (civil, not criminal tax). The biggest loophole is money. Can you pay your lawyer to be as creative and annoying as you can. It's literally that simple.
Trump is a very good example of this. Bog down the court with motion practice, beg for continuances, and throw absolutely everything possible you can because you can. You won't see a Public Defender or a Low Income Clinic attorney do this. There is simply not enough of them.
#31
There was one guy who owed $464 million in bond and his lawyers said he couldn’t pay it and didn’t have the money to pay it. He then went on to say he did in fact have the money but didn’t want to pay it so they appealed hoping to lower it. The day of the deadline, a court announced they’d be lowering the bond to $175 million. It was a crazy loophole, he escaped consequences.
#32
I know someone who was arrested for occupying/trespassing a bank during an Occupy Wall Street protest. Since the bank had received a huge public bailout and hadn't yet repaid its debt to the U.S. government, my friend's lawyer was able to argue that the bank was public property, and got the case thrown out.
#33
I had a friend who altered a trip permit for his car, changing the date to extend the time of the permit. He was pulled over and got a ticket for altering a trip permit in X county.
My friend showed up at the county courthouse and argued that they couldn't prove he altered the permit in that county. Only that he had been caught in that county with the altered trip permit.
Technically correct for the win!
#34
Wife got a speeding ticket. The cop put the wrong color of the her car on the documents. I wrote in to the court to dismiss and they did.
#35
An attorney at my old work asked a paralegal to notarize something but signing a previous date. It was some kinda document that would’ve helped his client…like “see he did already do this beforehand, see how it was notarized on this date?” I don’t remember what it was exactly. I just overheard him ask her all low key…she refused saying she could get in trouble. He like sheepishly backed off but also with this smirking attitude like, “are you serious? a goody two shoes.” like she refused to sneak a candy bar into the movie theater or something.
Creep. He was a real jerk too. Really sloppy and with no sense of due diligence. I hope he gets busted for something one day.
#36
Well, almost all the attorneys I’ve ever worked with pad their bills. And the expenses they claim are often untrue - I mean, not every single lunch or dinner you have with buddies is “client networking.” One attorney at a firm where I worked had a habit of sleeping with his clients while they were clients, which got him into some trouble, but he didn’t lose his license to practice law.
#37
Change my time entries to his time entries (I literally had another attorney sign whatever needed to be signed bc said attorney couldn’t bother to roll in the door until 4pm every day, at the earliest).
#38
Years ago I worked as a bookkeeper at a small firm (8 total staff and attorneys other than owner). Owner told me to cut him a check for 60k and not tell anyone. He wanted to fund his Vegas vacation, but at the same time told a sob story about how he couldn’t afford year end bonuses for anyone.
I left and they went under within a year. Not sure if a coincidence…
#39
I worked in matrimonial/family law (shudders, never again) and the attorney would pocket cash retainers and not record them/give them to the bookkeeper, then threaten to cancel payroll because he didn’t have enough to cover payroll, meanwhile he took in nearly $20K in cash that week.
#40
How’s this? Attorney constantly lies to clients about the probability of them winning their immigration claims ( in removal proceedings) to get as much money out of them as possible…….
#41
I don't typically like to post, but this is something I've held close to my heart.
Workers compensation here - to give you context, our old firm was sold & bought by a young attorney from a rich background. He promoted all of the staff to paralegals & chased out all the other atty so it was only him. He didn't have to practice or go to court since our firm was a third party administrator that created MSA & we submitted them to CMS. He would smoke pot & drink in his office with the door closed but it would get so foggy & leak into the other rooms.
We had one IT guy, three paralegals & an intern.
After he bought us, he went out and bought a firm that handled post settlement distribution. Essential, we had to write reports to submit showing how the money was being used. By law, it had to be submitted yearly to show CMS and Medicare that yes, these expenses are for his injury.
With that purchase, we controlled close to 8+million dollars.
Myself & another paralegal were semi trained in the reports. I say semi because he fired the entire staff of the other firm & gave the old manager 12 hours to train us....
As we started doing the reports, we noticed that there was money being moved out and by law you are required to show if money is taken in and out. We did the reports and gave them to our attorney to review. He flips out on us & tells us not to show the money distribution. I'm taking about millions being moved around.
At first, we thought it was weird but didn't want to argue with him. Then as we learn the job, we realized what he was doing. He started buying cars, expanding the firm to include automobile accidents cause WTH....
I would do the reports correctly & send then without his approval. He never noticed.
He stopped sending the clients their statement because they were so trusting but also old/injured.
One client called asking for his statement & our attorney lied & says the bank was not sending any out.
I quit. I couldn't do it.
I don't know how much money he stole, but he came from an old family of money so anything he spent, he eventually moved back in with his own money I'm sure.
I sent my reports with a hand written note to CMS /medicare asking for help to report him. I showed where he was moving money. I never heard back even after a few months of the submissions.
The firm is still around. I still talk to the IT guy but everyone quit after I left for other jobs. The firm will do nurse care working as well. They still do submission & still have the post settlement firm. The building looks deteriorated cause I drive past it sometimes.
I was really young, think college age & I didn't know you could report him for what he was doing. I didn't collect any evidence because we were afraid to get in trouble too. It still weighs heavily on me thinking about all those clients & I have so many regrets. It's been over ten years now.
I'm a paralegal for family law, super straight family owned firm that cares for it's clients & staff. I love it but I do still think back a lot on this.
#42
Bill extra to his wealthier clients and encourage us to do the same. He eventually left the firm as a founding partner after he wanted to fire all staff (paralegals, admin) during Covid because they couldn’t afford to keep us on. The other partners and attorneys decided to take pay cuts so that they could afford to keep us on 3/5 days. That made him upset enough that he left to go practice on his own even though he’s already in his 80s and should be retired. Not sure how he’s faring but 3 years later and he’s still running his solo practice. He’s incredibly greedy and owns 20+ properties in our town. I know this because he told me, and he’d have his tenants deliver rent checks to our law office! Not sure why he was so adamant on making infinite amounts of money unethically when he already has everything and more. It’s sad.
#43
Our local school district Executive Director/Compliance Officer/HR head/Public records officer/Title IX complaints officer/Harrassment, Bullying, and Intimidation officer joined a private facebook group for special education parents under a false name. She then friended a parent who was represented in complaints against the district. She would also attend special education meetings with parents as a “note taker” and not tell the parents she was a lawyer for the district. The Bar found that she didn’t actually quite violate any rules.
#44
A baby attorney (who knew better) unethically billed a client for the full hour instead of the thirty minutes. The client complained to a paralegal asking for a refund as they had a screenshot of the minutes spent speaking with the attorney. The attorney responded in writing to the client that they would no charge the next three correspondence with them instead of revising their time. The client refused and demanded to just be billed for the actual time spent that the attorney did. Just ugly, no integrity, and no accountability for the client’s retainer.
#45
Not a lawyer but...... I was once cited for riding a jet ski without a life jacket. (yes, I know, spare me the lecture) I will preface this story by saying, legal innocence is not the same thing as being truly innocent. Legal innocence is if the state cannot prove beyond a reasonable doubt that you committed the act youre entitled relief from punishment. I do not lie nor would I ever lie in court to attain the outcome desired. I would rather be punished than lie. I never say I didnt run the stop sign, I just prove that the officer/deputys vantagepoint was did not allow for them to conclusively determine whether I ran the stop sign. Never do I go in and state I didnt run the stop sign. That behavior would make me a dirty rat.
I forgot to pay the ticket on time and it automatically defaulted to a challenge. Being the studious individual I am. I read the entire statute on PWC's. There was no way out of my ticket, until I got the very last line. It said that for a professional performer engaged, participating or practicing for a sanctioned event. Boat parade, race, tournament etc One didnt need to have a life jacket on. So I signed up for 2 professional jet ski races, pay on the day of the race.
I arrive to court and had to wait outside with all the DUI people because they wrote my time down incorrectly. The PD is waiting along with the SA. I ask him how a motion to dismiss works and he tells me i need to go downstairs to the clerks office and fill out a form, and then states that they will never grant a motion to dismiss without the office being present. In the clerks office I am greeted with good morning. I responded with my request for the form which immediately pisses her off that I didnt address her good morning. I apologize, respond and then ask for the motion form. She refuses to give it to me and says the judge will not grant my motion without the office being present. I tell her as courteously as possible that my argument may not require the officer to be present and because shes a member of the opposing party I cant tell her what my defense will be. This angers her greatly and she refuses to give me the paperwork needed. I return to the courtroom and tell the PD this and he shrugs his shoulders and provides no other response.
I sit through DUI/misdemeanor proceedings and Im the last person their. The judge inquires as to my presence and the stenographer tells her, my time was incorrectly recorded but that the gentleman is here to request a motion to dismiss. The SA is looking through his accordian and paying very little attention throughout. The judge addresses me and I formally request my motion to dismiss while expressing a confused body language. I also state they wouldnt give me the form downstairs so this is why Im doing it this way.
The SA is still filing through his accordian and I state that I am requesting a motion to dismiss based on the professional performer exemption. The SA closes his accordian but is still looking at his papers. I try to physically hand the printed statute and race registrations to the judge which draws the ire of the bailiff, the stenographers, and the SA. The PD looks embarassed, and gestures that he didnt put me up to this. I then realize my error and hand it to the bailiff. After much silent body language, I realize the judge is unfamiliar with the statute and wants me to read the section I was using in my defense. She almost laughed in the middle of my reading. I guess she was imagining Eviel Knievel or something. Upon finishing, her face shifted to skepticism and she remained silent for about 30 seconds. The SA is now at full attention and angry. I could tell they thought I was liar and a charlatan, and she replied that this is not how the law was intended to be interpreted. She looks over to the SA and he says he hasnt received my file since this was just an arraignment and says "furthermore I am completely against a dismissal without the officer being present" I wasnt backing down, so she thinks for minute and says," lemme ask you this, were you registered the day you received the citation?" I shuffle the papers around nervously and notice no dates on the papers to prove I wasnt. As tempted as I was, I told hung my head and said, no your honor I was not. The judge satisfied that she has defeated me begins to reach for her gavel. Trying to save face that I wasnt here to pull shenanigans I defend my attempt by stating "your honor I wasnt aware that participation was defined by when an applicant was registered". Judge pounds her gavel and says motion to dismiss granted" Im shocked, the SA is shocked and pissed. Everyone is looking at me to say something. In my confusion I thought that I was supposed to say something enlightening or inspiring. So I tell the court I always believe in safety and the notion of wearing a life jacket etc etc. Until the bailiff stops me. Confused I look around and everyone is now mad at me. The SA angrily states "you won already!!" Then it hits me and say, "thank you your honor"
While driving home I reflect upon what happened and then it hits me. The judge thought I was stating in the declaratory that participation isnt defined by when an applicant is registered!
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