The Tennessee Supreme Court temporarily suspended Shelby County lawyer Johnny Q. Rasberry Jr. on Dec. 2 after Rasberry failed to respond to the board regarding a complaint of misconduct. Rasberry is immediately precluded from accepting any new cases and must cease representing any existing clients by Jan. 1. Read the BPR release.

The state court also temporarily suspended Sullivan County lawyer Don W. Cooper on Dec. 4 upon finding he misappropriated funds and poses a risk of substantial harm to the public. Cooper is immediately precluded from accepting new cases and must cease representing existing clients by Jan. 3. He is also required to notify all clients he represents of his suspension. Read the BPR release.

The Tennessee Supreme Court disbarred Auston Wortman III from the practice of law on Dec 4. Wortman, who practiced in Collierville, was sentenced to 30 years on Nov. 9 after he admitted to attempting to kill his wife. The Court took its action after it found Wortman could not successfully defend himself against the charges alleged in three complaints of misconduct. Read the BPR release.

The Tennessee Supreme Court today unanimously affirmed a six-month suspension of Nashville attorney Paul J. Walwyn’s law license for failure to act diligently in his representation of clients. The Board of Professional Responsibility suspended Walwyn in 2012 for six months, with 30 days active suspension and five months’ probation, for violating certain Rules of Professional Conduct. Walwyn appealed to the Chancery Court for Davidson County and later to the state Supreme Court, claiming there had been multiple constitutional errors. Read the opinion authored by Justice Cornelia A. Clark and read the BPR release. 

The Tennessee Supreme Court suspended Jamie Ellen Machamer from the practice of law on Nov. 30 for one year and 30 days to be served as active suspension and the remainder on probation. Machamer, a Nashville lawyer, failed to adequately communicate with a client she represented in a divorce and estate matters and also failed to communicate with clients she was appointed to represent in post-conviction matters. Read the BPR release.

Samuel Joseph Harris, formerly of Cookeville, was disbarred by the Tennessee Supreme Court on Nov. 25. The Board of Professional Responsibility alleged Harris accepted fees from his clients but failed to perform the professional services for which he was retained; failed to reasonably communicate with his clients regarding the status of their legal matters; failed to inform his clients his license had been suspended by the court and abandoned his clients and his law practice. He was ordered to pay restitution to three former clients. His license had been suspended since May 2, 2014. Read the BPR press release.

A number of lawyers have been reinstated to the practice of law after being suspended for failing to pay the 2015 registration fee to the Board of Professional Responsibility and failing to report that trust accounts are participating in the Interest on Lawyers’ Trust Accounts (IOLTA) program, failing to complete CLE requirements in 2013 and 2015, and failing to pay the professional privilege tax in 2015. See the updated lists at the links above.

The Tennessee Supreme Court issued three orders this week suspending Tennessee-licensed attorneys who did not pay their registration fee to the Board of Professional Responsibility and/or did not file a mandatory compliance statement that eligible client funds are held in accounts participating in the Interest on Lawyers’ Trust Accounts (IOLTA) program. Those who have complied with the rules since the orders were issued, and for whom notification of a status change has been received from the Board of Professional Responsibility, are noted as reinstated. See the updated lists and court orders.

Seven lawyers have been reinstated to the practice of law after being suspended for a variety of administrative violations, including nonpayment of professional taxes in 2015, failure to comply with CLE requirements in 2015, failure to comply with CLE requirements in 2012 and nonpayment of fees in 2011. See the updated lists at the links above.

The law license of Yarboro Ann Sallee was placed on disability inactive status Nov. 18 by the Tennessee Supreme Court. The Knox County lawyer told the BPR that she suffers from a disability that prevents her from defending herself against a disciplinary complaint. Sallee’s law license was suspended on July 23. Read the BPR release.

The Tennessee Supreme Court temporarily suspended Davidson County lawyer Anton Lorenzo Jackson from the practice of law on Nov. 18. Jackson failed to respond to the Board of Professional Responsibility regarding a complaint of misconduct. He is immediately precluded from accepting any new cases and is required to cease representing existing clients by Dec. 18. Read the BPR release.