Washington Lawyer - September 2019 - 43

DISCIPLINARY SUMMARIES
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In re Jason Lee Van Dyke. Bar No. 1027245. June 6,
2019. In a reciprocal matter from Texas, the D.C.
Court of Appeals imposed reciprocal discipline
and suspended Van Dyke for 18 months, nunc pro
tunc to April 22, 2019, with all but three months of
the suspension stayed, followed by a 15-month
period of probation subject to the conditions
imposed by the state of Texas. In Texas, Van Dyke
was found to have threatened criminal or disciplinary charges solely to gain advantage in a civil
matter, engaged in a conflict of interest, and
threatened physical violence against a complainant in a disciplinary matter.
In re Rachel L. Yosha. Bar No. 423700. May 2, 2019.
In a reciprocal matter from Arizona, the D.C.
Court of Appeals imposed functionally identical
reciprocal discipline and suspended Yosha for
90 days, nunc pro tunc to February 12, 2019,
followed by two years of probation. Reinstatement is conditioned upon fitness and compliance with all conditions imposed by Arizona.
In Arizona, Yosha was found to have made
inappropriate attempts to secure her fee from
former clients by threatening to use information
she gained during the representation to
damage her former client.

In re Edward E. Moawad. Bar No. 998755. June 25,
2019. Moawad was suspended on an interim basis
based upon discipline imposed in Virginia.
Informal Admonitions Issued by the Office
of Disciplinary Counsel
In re David L. Lowans. Bar No. 266635. May 15, 2019.
Disciplinary Counsel issued Lowans an informal
admonition. Lowans's attorney trust account was
in overdraft as a result of a credit card processing
fee debited from the account. There was no clear
evidence of mishandling of the trust funds or that
client funds were affected by the overdrafts.
However, Lowans failed to maintain complete
financial records and failed to ensure the law firm
had in effect measures giving reasonable assurance of same. Rules 1.15(a) and 5.1(a).

In re James S. DelSordo. Bar No. 498507. June 17,
2019. DelSordo was suspended on an interim
basis based upon discipline imposed in Virginia.

In re Billy Ponds. Bar No. 379883. June 24, 2019.
The Board on Professional Responsibility dismissed the charges in this matter.

In re Stewart L. Gitler. Bar No. 387303. May 31,
2019. Gitler was suspended on an interim basis
based upon discipline imposed in Virginia.

In re Billy L. Ponds. Bar No. 379883. June 24, 2019.
The Board on Professional Responsibility recommended that the D.C. Court of Appeals suspend
Ponds for nine months and that he be required
to pay restitution to the client as a condition of
reinstatement and complete a CLE course concerning In re Mance. Ponds took a flat fee from
two clients at the start of his representation of
each. Neither was put into a trust account. In each
case, Ponds attempted to have his clients execute
a waiver to avoid the obligation to have the funds

In re John F. Lakin. Bar No. 474460. June 17, 2019.
Lakin was suspended on an interim basis based
upon discipline imposed in Florida.
In re Matthew A. LeFande. Bar No. 475995. May 31,
2019. LeFande was suspended on an interim basis
based upon conviction of a serious crime.

Disciplinary Actions Taken by the Board
on Professional Responsibility Hearing
Committees on Negotiated Discipline

Original Matters

In re Carolyn M. Crowley. Bar No. 444797. May 3,
2019. Crowley was suspended on an interim basis
based upon discipline imposed in Florida.

In re Daniel S. Carlson. Bar No. 1000708. May 29,
2019. Carlson was suspended on an interim basis
based upon discipline imposed in Michigan.

In re Monique A. Tovar. Bar No. 1016038. June 27,
2019. The Board on Professional Responsibility
recommended that the D.C. Court of Appeals
disbar Tovar by consent.

Disciplinary Actions Taken by the Board
on Professional Responsibility

In re Paul S. Haar. Bar No. 368605. June 24, 2019.
The Board on Professional Responsibility recommended that the D.C. Court of Appeals dismiss
the charges against Haar regarding one client
matter and suspend Haar for seven months,
followed by one year of probation with conditions, in a second client matter. In the latter, while
retained to represent a client in a complex immigration case, Haar engaged in commingling in
violation of Rule 1.15(a) when he deposited a flat
fee into an operating account that contained his
own funds, and he engaged in misappropriation
when the balance in that account fell below the
amount of the unearned fee, violating Rule 1.15(e).

Interim Suspensions Issued by the District
of Columbia Court of Appeals

held in his trust account. The waivers did not
comply with Mance. These actions violated D.C.
Rules 1.15(a) and (e) and Virginia Rule 1.15(b)(5)
(negligent misappropriation); D.C. Rule 1.15(a) and
Virginia Rule 1.15(c) (record keeping); D.C. Rule
1.16(d) (failure to return unearned fees); and D.C.
Rule 1.5(a) (unreasonable fee). The Board Chair
wrote a Separate Statement in Dissent wherein
he joined the Board in its decision with one
exception: Ponds violated Rule 1.5(a) when he
charged and received a purported "non-refundable" flat fee, because doing so constrained his
clients' freedom to terminate his services. Three
other Board members concurred in the Separate
Statement.

In re Perlesta A. Hollingsworth Jr. Bar No. 494309.
May 13, 2019. The Board on Professional
Responsibility's Hearing Committee Number Six
recommended that the D.C. Court of Appeals
accept Hollingsworth's petition for negotiated
discipline and suspend him for six months, with
three months stayed in favor of a one-year probation with the conditions that Hollingsworth (1)
not engage in any misconduct in this or any other
jurisdiction during the period of probation and (2)
complete nine hours of continuing legal education courses pre-approved by Disciplinary
Counsel, and with a violation of the terms of probation resulting in Hollingsworth serving the full
six-month suspension for violations of Rule 1.15(a).
The Office of Disciplinary Counsel compiled the
foregoing summaries of disciplinary actions.
Informal Admonitions issued by Disciplinary Counsel
and Reports and Recommendations issued by the
Board on Professional Responsibility are posted
at www.dcattorneydiscipline.org. Most board
recommendations as to discipline are not final until
considered by the court. Court opinions are printed in
the Atlantic Reporter and also are available online
for decisions issued since August 1998. To obtain a
copy of a recent slip opinion, visit www.dccourts.gov/
court-of-appeals/opinions-memorandumof-judgments.

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SEPTEMBER 2019

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WASHINGTON LAWYER 43
http://www.dcattorneydiscipline.org https://www.dccourts.gov/court-of-appeals/opinions-memorandum-of-judgments https://www.dccourts.gov/court-of-appeals/opinions-memorandum-of-judgments https://www.dccourts.gov/court-of-appeals/opinions-memorandum-of-judgments https://www.dcbar.org/
Washington Lawyer - September 2019

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