Summary
The Colorado Office of the Presiding Disciplinary Judge disbarred Dewayne Dell Rymer for knowingly converting trust funds without authorization. Rymer transferred and used more than $200,000 from a client’s family trust, made unauthorized loans to his son, and failed to account for additional funds. The order also required restitution of $231,914.76 and payment of proceeding costs.
Topics
Practice areas
Questions Presented
- Whether Respondent converted trust funds without authorization in violation of Colo. RPC 8.4(c).
- Whether disbarment was the appropriate sanction for knowingly converting and misappropriating client or trust funds causing substantial injury.
Holdings
- Respondent violated Colo. RPC 8.4(c) by knowingly converting trust funds without authorization, including $5,052.95 that was not deposited into the Trust account, $217,195.00 withdrawn from the Trust corpus, and $46,000.00 loaned to his son.
- Disbarment was warranted because Respondent knowingly converted more than $200,000 in trust funds, caused substantial injury, failed to make restitution, and presented no significant mitigating evidence.
Key quotations
“Disbarment is generally appropriate, absent significant evidence of mitigation, when a lawyer knowingly uses client funds without authority and causes injury.” (443)
“Knowing conversion or misappropriation of client money "consists simply of a lawyer taking a client's money entrusted to him, knowing that it is the client's money and knowing that the client has not authorized the taking."” (447)
“These facts demonstrate Respondent is a danger to the public.” (448)
Factual background
Respondent created the Jerry K. Phelps Family Trust, designated himself trustee, and received assets and approximately $165,052.59 to manage for the benefit of Jerry K. Phelps and his daughters. Over approximately three years, Respondent transferred or withdrew substantial trust funds, including funds used for his own purposes and loans to his son, without authorization. The Hearing Board found that Respondent's explanation that Phelps authorized the transfers was not credible and determined that Respondent owed the Trust approximately $231,914.76.
Procedural history
The People filed a disciplinary complaint on October 11, 2006. The Hearing Board denied the People's motion for summary judgment but found certain affidavit facts undisputed under C.R.C.P. 56(d). Following a March 26, 2007 hearing, the Board found by clear and convincing evidence that Respondent converted trust funds and ordered disbarment, restitution, and payment of costs.