Attorney Keith Wheaton of Martinsburg, WV; rubber check aficionado

The state of West Virginia presented Keith L. Wheaton with a law license in 1995 after he graduated from the University of West Virginia School of Law.

The Lawyer Disciplinary Board found Keith guilty of engaging in the following misconduct.

• Wrote $10,000 settlement check on insufficient funds account to his client (rubber)
• Felony worthless check warrant was issued against Keith
• Subsequently Keith deposited the $10,000 into his personal account to cover the closing costs of his personal residence
• Failed to deposit client settlement funds into a client trust account
• Failed to have a written contingency fee agreement
• Failed to act with due diligence (slacker)
• Failed to provide an itemized statement to his client
• Engaged in conduct involving fraud, deceit, dishonesty, or misrepresentation
• Intentionally made misrepresentations to both his client and to law enforcement
• Failedto pursue a matter for which he was retained
• Falsely represented to his client that he had filed a civil action when, in fact, he had not
• Failed to file civil action on client’s behalf
• Failed to return his client's phone calls
• Failed to provide his client with sufficient information to participate in decisions
• Failed to advise the client that he had not filed a civil action on her behalf
• Failed to advise the client that the statute of limitations had run on her claim
• Failed to fulfill reasonable client expectations for information consistent with the client's best interests
• Failed to reduce his contingency fee agreement to writing as required to do
• Failed to refund the advanced payment of the fee that was not earned
• Check issued to Keith and Marianne Short as their portion of a settlement was returned for insufficient funds (rubber)
• A second felony worthless check warrant was issued against Keith as a result
• Checks totaling $2,300 of the $2,500 Dr. Lurito was to be paid to produce a report regarding future and past economic damages all bounced
• The only check to Dr. Lurito that did not bounce was for $50.00
• Misappropriated (stole) client advance funds and settlement proceeds to his own personal use
• Failed to provide Mr. Pruden with sufficient information to participate in decisions
• Failed to advise Mr. Pruden that he had not filed a civil action on his behalf
• Failed to fulfill reasonable client expectations for information consistent with the client's best interests
• Misrepresented (lied) to Mr. Pruden that a civil action had been filed and, furthermore, that the court had removed the case from its docket
• Failed to withdraw when it was clear that he could not, or chose not, to perform the legal services for which he had been retained
• Engaged in a pattern of misconduct
• Routinely accepted legal fees for services which he never performed
• Exhibited a pattern of failing to communicate with his client
• Made material misrepresentation to his clients and the court
• Failed to diligently pursue cases on behalf of his client
• Exhibited a pattern of making false statements to ethics investigators (Screw you, said Keith!)

As a direct consequence of his misconduct, the apologists for Attorney Misfits sitting on the West Virginia Supreme Court punished Justin by gifting him with a complimentary 2-yearsuspension of his law license.

As we speak (ca. January 2023), Justin practices his so-called brand of law with Wheaton Law PLLC at 839 Winchester Avenue in Martinsburg, West Virginia.