Nashville lawyer Lewis Lyman Laska received a censure from the Tennessee Supreme Court today. The court found that Laska (1) improperly sought written discovery from non-parties through subpoena while representing himself in his own divorce proceeding; (2) informed one of the non-parties that they could face criminal action if they failed to properly respond to the subpoena; and (3) engaged in harassing conduct against the non-parties, which included a threat to file a disciplinary complaint against a non-party attorney to gain an advantage in his civil proceeding. The court found that these acts violated Rules of Professional Conduct 4.4(a)(1-2) and 8.4(a), (c) and (d).

The Tennessee Supreme Court today suspended Jefferson County lawyer Capp Peterson Taylor for two years. The court took the action based on three complaints that Taylor failed to adequately communicate with clients and keep them informed of the status of their cases. In addition, the court found that Taylor was in an improper partnership with a non-lawyer and failed to deposit retainer fees into a trust account. His actions were determined to violate Rules of Professional Conduct 1.4, 1.15(a) and (c), 5.4(b) and 8.4(g).

The Tennessee Supreme Court today suspended Hawkins County lawyer Whitney Suzanne Bailey for two years, with 45 days to be served on active suspension and the remainder on probation. During the probationary period, the court ordered her to obtain an evaluation with the Tennessee Lawyers Assistance Program, engage the services of a practice monitor and complete the Board of Professional Responsibility’s three-hour trust accounting workshop. Bailey admitted her conduct — abandoning a client’s case, taking no action in a case she was retained to handle, failing to file adoption paperwork for a client and misleading a client regarding the status of a case — violated Rules of Professional Conduct 1.3, 1.4, 1.16(d)(4) and (6), and 8.4(d).

Illinois lawyer Jeffrey Wade Deer was disbarred by the Tennessee Supreme Court today after the Supreme Court of Illinois disbarred him on May 21, 2019. In September, the Tennessee court asked Deer to show why reciprocal discipline should not be imposed in Tennessee. Deer did not respond. The court reports that the discipline imposed is identical to that imposed in Illinois.

The Tennessee Supreme Court yesterday denied a third petition from Davidson County lawyer Brian Phillip Manookian to dissolve a suspension re-imposed on him on May 17, 2019, after he failed to comply with requirements for probation. Manookian filed, and the court denied, two previous petitions for dissolution this past fall. The third petition, filed on Dec. 13, 2019, argued that the Board of Professional Responsibility had failed to proceed with “all due speed” in his case. The court again denied the petition, saying that Manookian continues to pose a threat of substantial harm to the public and has failed to establish good cause for dissolution or modification of the suspension.

Georgia lawyer Chuck Richard Pardue was reinstated to the practice of law on Dec. 16, 2019. He had been placed on inactive status in June 2012. Pardue petitioned the court for reinstatement and the court found his petition to be satisfactory and reinstatement to be appropriate. The court issued the order on Dec. 30, 2019.

Georgia lawyer Eric Jason Byrd on Thursday received a public censure from the Tennessee Supreme Court yesterday. Byrd began working remotely for a Tennessee law firm in late 2018. In January 2019, he moved to Nashville and began working in the law firm’s Nashville office. However, he did not file an application for comity admission in Tennessee until May 16. In addition, his website and the letterhead used by the firm failed to indicate that he was not yet licensed in Tennessee. His actions were found to violate Rules of Professional Conduct 5.5 and 7.1.

Shelby County lawyer Clinton Daniel Hermes was reinstated to the practice of law on Dec. 5. He was placed on inactive status on May 10, 2013. Hermes petitioned the court for reinstatement and the court found his petition to be satisfactory and reinstatement to be appropriate. The court issued its order on Dec. 20.

Davidson County lawyer Erica May Lotz was suspended today following suspension by the Supreme Court of Louisiana in September. Lotz was suspended by the Louisiana court for one year and one day for mismanaging her client trust account. All but 30 days of the suspension was deferred and the active suspension is to be followed by two years of unsupervised probation. The Tennessee Supreme Court imposed identical terms and conditions.

The Tennessee Supreme Court suspended Davidson County lawyer John Ryan Poole on Tuesday after finding that he failed to respond to the Board of Professional Responsibility, misappropriated funds and posed a threat of substantial harm to the public. The suspension requires Poole to immediately stop accepting cases and cease representing current clients by Jan. 6, 2020. The suspension will remain in effect until dissolution or modification by the court.