TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Kate Prince on Jun 21, 2022

Stanley Douglas Darnell was last week censured by the Board of Professional Responsibility of the Tennessee Supreme Court. Darnell failed to provide sufficient oversight of his legal assistant, who prepared a forged final decree and letter without Darnell’s knowledge. He also did not have protocols in place sufficient to reveal that the client’s divorce petition hadn’t been filed. Darnell also received a flat fee for the representation and failed to place the unearned funds in his trust account at the beginning of the representation. A public censure is a rebuke and warning to the attorney, but it does not affect the attorney’s ability to practice law.