Attorneys Suspended Nine Months for Influencing Client’s Story
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Two attorneys received nine-month suspensions after admitting to influencing their client’s version of events and pursuing a fraudulent suit for over a year. In the Matter of Rios. ABA Section of Litigation leaders explain that this case from the New York Appellate Division, First Department, sends a strong message to lawyers: Ensure that a solid factual underpinning exists before taking on new cases, and do not manipulate the facts to create a legal basis for the case.
New Firm Opens Its Doors
About three years after graduating from law school, two classmates opened a personal injury firm together. A few months later, the attorneys met with a woman who claimed she had fallen on a badly cracked sidewalk while exiting a church. She could not remember the name of the church or its precise location. After agreeing to take the case, the pair began to investigate. They notified the only church that fit her description about the incident and sought information from the city as to sidewalk repairs.
When visiting the site, the attorneys found no defects in the only sidewalk abutting the church. The attorneys did notice, however, that the sidewalk across the street from the church was badly cracked. The attorneys photographed both sidewalks. Meanwhile, based on information they obtained from the city, the attorneys concluded that their client had no viable claim against the church.
Read original articleTags: First Department, New York Appellate Division
