Attorney James Upton of Tuscaloosa, AL; cheating loser

The state of Alabama presented Michael Jay Upton with a law license in 1993 after he graduated from the University of Alabama School of Law.

The Alabama State Bar Association found Mikey guilty of the following misconduct.

• Charged and/or collected an unreasonable fee (cheater)
• Failed to safeguard client funds
• Violated or attempted to violate rules of conduct, knowingly assisted, or induced another to do so, or did so through the acts of another
• Engaged in conduct that adversely reflects on his fitness to practice law
• Engaged in conduct involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit, or misrepresentation
• Hired by parents of college student to represent him in a criminal matter
• Parents paid a fee of $4,000 but with a week after the arrest, the college student client decided to hire a different attorney
• The client’s parents requested a refund and, after Mikey refused to provide a refund, the parents retained an attorney who sued Mikey in small claims court in order to obtain the refund
• Failed to communicate the basis or rate of the fee in writing
• Failed to perform advertised services at the advertised fee

As a direct consequence of his misconduct, the cheerleaders for Attorney Misfits sitting on the Statewide Grievance Committee punished Mikey by gifting him with a complimentary reprimand.

And lastly, as one would suspect, Mikey fails to mention the misconduct set forth above on his self-serving website at www.uptonlawyer.com.  Apparently, he decided to conceal this relevant information from prospective clients so that he would not limit his future victim pool.

As we speak (ca. May 2021), Mikey practices at 410 20^th Avenue in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.