holding attorney guilty of violating Louisiana equivalent of Rule 8.4 for fraud committed by paralegal
How later courts described this case
- holding attorney guilty of violating Louisiana equivalent of Rule 8.4 for fraud committed by paralegal
Written by the judges who cited it.
The opinion
KNOLL, J.,
dissenting.
| , With all due respect, I disagree with the sanctions imposed on respondent. I find the sanctions too harsh for his act of negligence that did not cause great harm to the legal profession or the public. The actual harm was caused by the criminal act of Theresa Desselle Adducci, the paralegal in respondent’s office; but for her criminal conduct of embezzling funds, respondent would not have been found to be negligent. Indeed, respondent was a victim of Ms. Adducci’s criminal conduct. Respondent’s honesty, integrity, and professionalism are not questioned in these proceedings; the Board found respondent genuinely believed he had systems in place for the safekeeping of his clients’ property. In my view, the sanction imposed here is inappropriate and should be reserved for the more egregious cases.