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In re Crews4/5/2005
Opinion Vote: DISCIPLINE ORDERED.
White, C.J., Wolff, Stith, Teitelman, Limbaugh and Russell, JJ., and Gaertner, Sp .J.. concur.
Price, J., not participating.
Opinion:
I.
James F. Crews, Respondent, obtained his Missouri license to practice law in 1964. Respondent's disciplinary action involves multiple violations of the rules of professional conduct in relation to his representation of Tom and Betty Hodge and Betty's son, Richard Vaughn (collectively Plaintiffs). Respondent is ordered suspended from the practice of law indefinitely with leave to apply for reinstatement in one year subject to the successful completion of this Court's enumerated conditions.
II.
The facts, as reported by the Disciplinary Hearing Panel (DHP), are as follows:
The Plaintiffs suffered injuries when a vehicle driven by Jerry Daniels executed a left-hand turn immediately in front of their vehicle making it impossible for Plaintiffs to avoid the ensuing collision. Respondent initially advised Plaintiffs that their own insurance policy would cover their injuries. After that coverage was exhausted, Respondent agreed to represent the Plaintiffs in a personal injury suit against Mr. Daniels and his employer, Miller County Motors (MCM). The fee contingency agreement for this representation was never memorialized in writing.
Respondent hired an investigator to substantiate whether Daniels was acting within the scope of his employment at the time of the accident; a fact the investigator was unable to confirm. As four years ticked by, Respondent failed to pursue the action further and was unresponsive to the Plaintiffs' repeated inquiries concerning the case. Finally, the Plaintiffs conducted their own investigation and were able to obtain an affidavit from Mr. Daniels stating that he was acting in the course of his employment at the time of the accident. Due to Respondent's delay in developing the case, the petition was not filed until five days prior to the running of the five-year statute of limitations.
Respondent was also uncommunicative with the Plaintiffs when MCM filed its motion for summary judgment alleging that Daniels was not acting in the scope of his employment at the time of the accident. Respondent filed no response to this motion and did not attend the hearing on the motion resulting in a ruling in favor of the defendants. Later, at the disciplinary hearing, Respondent would testify that it was unnecessary to defend against a summary judgment motion that he believed was deficient on its face. Respondent discounted the language in Rule 74.04(c)(2) mandating a response to summary judgment motions stating that it "doesn't mean anything."
The Plaintiffs discovered their case was dismissed when they contacted the circuit clerk's office and inquired about when the case would be docketed. Plaintiffs immediately contacted Respondent who informed them the court had mistaken their case for another case he was handling for them. Respondent assured the Plaintiffs that he would have the summary judgment set aside and filed a motion to set it aside alleging that his staff had improperly calendared the hearing date. In response to the Chief Disciplinary Counsel's (CDC) inquiry, Respondent wrote that he failed to appear at the hearing because he had confused the personal injury case with the other case.
Respondent next informed Plaintiffs that his motion to set aside the summary judgment had been overruled and that he would have to appeal the ruling. Plaintiffs offered to hire additional attorneys to assist but their offer was refused. Respondent's initial brief with the court of app
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