Attorney Crystal Goan of Bulls Gap, TN; ethical gremlin

The state of Tennessee presented Crystal Michelle Goan with a law license in 2005 after she graduated from the University of Memphis Law School.

The Board of Professional Responsibility found Crystal guilty of the following misconduct.

In one matter, Crystal’s misconduct related to her divorce from her former husband James Roy Klumb and their divorce. Shortly after the divorce, Klumb filed a civil lawsuit against Crystal in the U.S. District Court.

Klumb who was a former Greenville businessman, claimed in the lawsuit that, during the marriage, Crystal installed spyware on his business computers without his knowledge, altered documents and emails and committed other acts of deception that were calculated to allow her to receive a favorable divorce settlement.

A bench trial held by U.S. District Court judge William B. Mitchell Carter of Chatanooga resulted in a ruling favorable to Klumb.

In ruling in Klumb’s favor, Judge Carter noted that Crystal "engaged in an elaborate, deceptive scheme which involved wiretapping [Klumb's] computer to intercept emails" and "altering those emails to make it appear [Klumb] was having an affair, and altering legal documents in order to provide that if [Klumb] did have an affair, [Goan] would receive more money in a divorce.”

Judge Carter ruled that Crystal had violated the Federal Wiretap Act and the Tennessee Wiretap Act by installing spyware on Klumb’s business computers. Carter awarded Klumb $10,000 in statutory damages plus $10,000 in punitive damages.

As a consequence of her misconduct, the cheerleaders for Attorney Misfits sitting on the Tennessee Supreme Court punished Crystal by gifting her with a complimentary reprimand.

Because Attorney Misfits in Tennessee are held to a much lower standard of conduct then everyone else, Crystal was never criminally charged for violating the Federal and Tennessee Wiretap Acts.

As we speak (ca. November 2014), Crystal practices at 273 Highway 11 East in Bulls Gap, Tennessee.