► Attorney Lawrence Burdette, Jr. of Charleston, WV; ethical dwarf |
Attorney Lawrence Burdette, Jr. of Charleston, WV; ethical dwarf The state of California provided John Frederick Wolcott of with a law license in 1984 after he graduated from LaSalle University Law School in Wilmette, Illinois.
The Committee on Legal Ethics of the West Virginia State Bar found Lawrence guilty of the following misconduct.
Lawrence found it acceptable to charge four of his clients (victims) higher fees than the lawful limit set forth in the West Virginia Workers’ Compensation Act, which states in part:
“In no case shall the fee received by the attorney of a claimant or dependent be in excess of twenty percent [20%] of the benefits to be paid during a period of two hundred eight [208] weeks.”
One of the clients’s that Lawrence bilked Raymond Kirk. Kirk received a permanent total disability award, which resulted in back pay award of $97,216.83. Lawrence took 20% of this award as his fee, which amount to $19,443.36. In addition, Kirk received future monthly permanent disability benefits. Lawrence calculated the amount Kirk would receive for 208 weeks. This amounted to $14,140, which Lawrence also collected from Kirk’s back pay award.
As a consequence of his misconduct, the supporters for Attorney Misfits sitting on the West Virginia Supreme Court punished Lawrence by gifting him with a complimentary 1-year suspension of his law license.
As we speak (ca. April 2013) Lawrence practices at 308 Buchanan Street in Charleston, West Virginia.
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