Lawyer fined $30K for practicing law 17 years after losing law license
An Ohio lawyer is facing a $30,000 fine for continuing to practice law despite being disbarred 17 years ago. (Image from Shutterstock)
An Ohio lawyer is facing a $30,000 fine for continuing to practice law despite being disbarred 17 years ago.
Pippa Lynn Henderson Carter, who is from Cleveland Heights, Ohio, was initially disbarred in 2006 for engaging in the unauthorized practice of law during her suspension, according to a Feb. 17 slip opinion from the Ohio Supreme Court.
Henderson Carter had been indefinitely suspended for, among other things, neglecting a client’s legal matter and failing to comply with a subpoena and cooperate in a disciplinary investigation.
Cleveland.com has additional coverage.
Despite her disbarment, Henderson Carter identified herself as counsel for a party in a juvenile court hearing in 2009, according to the opinion. The court fined her $1,000, but she never paid that fine. The court also issued a warrant for her arrest, but court records show that she was never arrested.
In 2023, Henderson Carter was accused by another attorney of claiming to represent someone in a probate matter, according to the opinion. She also had prepared two deeds for the transfer of real property and notarized the deeds as an attorney, the opinion said.
The Ohio Supreme Court issued an order for Henderson Carter to appear before them the following year, but she did not respond or go, the opinion said.
The Ohio Supreme Court’s Office of Disciplinary Counsel recommended a $30,000 fine and that Henderson Carter be enjoined from practicing law and performing notarial acts.
The Ohio Supreme Court adopted the recommendations, saying Henderson Carter’s “legal education and experience and her repeated and deliberate disregard of the orders of this court since May 1997 make it impossible to characterize her misconduct as a series of simple mistakes or the actions of a well-meaning but misguided person.”
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