Attorney Suspended for Excessive Fee in Work Comp Fraud Case
Thursday, September 27, 2018 | 0
A Columbus attorney will lose his law license for one year after the Ohio Supreme Court found that he violated professional-conduct rules by accepting an excessive fee for representing a psychiatrist in a fraud case.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday suspended David Paul Rieser’s law license for two years, but stayed one year of the sentence if he pays $50,000 to the client within 30 days.
The discipline came after the Columbus Bar Association lodged a complaint about Rieser’s treatment of a client, a psychiatrist who in 2012 was accused of overbilling the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation. The client made an initial payment of $30,000 but sent Rieser eight more checks totaling $107,998.79 even though the attorney did not ask for any additional fees.
The Board of Professional Conduct found that a reasonable fee would be from $30,000 to $60,000.
Rieser eventually deposited $50,000 in a trust account for his client, but spent the rest of the money he received. He did not maintain a client ledger.
The client, who is not named in the court opinion, pleaded guilty to a single misdemeanor workers’ compensation fraud count and reimbursed the BWC $257.40, plus $70,497.58 for the cost of the investigation.
The psychiatrist filed a grievance against Rieser in April 2015. After an investigation, Rieser and the Board of Professional Conduct stipulated that he had failed to inform the client that he did not have professional liability insurance, charged a clearly excessive fee, did not state the basis or rate of the fee and expenses within a reasonable time, did not maintain a record of funds held in the client’s behalf, and did not hold the client’s funds in an interest-bearing account.
Based on the fact that Rieser had been disciplined on two prior occasions, committed multiple offenses and had not shown regret, the Professional Conduct Board recommended that he be suspended from the practice of law indefinitely. The Supreme Court, however, rejected the recommendation and instead adopted the Columbus Bar Association’s recommended discipline.
The court noted that Rieser had testified that he had reduced his case load and is now focused on representing clients in municipal courts. He has also improved his trust management practices and intends to continue psychological treatment to manage day-to-day stress.
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