On Thursday, November 14, 2024, the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia annulled the law license of Robert L. Greer following serious violations of legal ethics concerning the misappropriation of client funds. This decision was the culmination of a disciplinary proceeding initiated by the Office of Disciplinary Counsel (ODC) after Greer was accused of mishandling client trust account funds over a nearly two-year period.
The case is entitled “Lawyer Disciplinary Board v. Robert L. Greer,” with case no. 23-82.
The case stemmed from a partition lawsuit that Greer filed on behalf of his client, Tammera L. Faris, in February 2020. The case involved the sale of a property, with sale proceeds amounting to $178,776.01 deposited into Greer’s Interest on Lawyer Trust Accounts (IOLTA) account in May 2021. Following the sale, checks were issued to Faris and two other clients, Lisa D. Nicholson and Christa L. Grega. However, when Grega attempted to deposit her check in November 2021, it bounced due to insufficient funds.
Grega reported the issue to Greer, who assured her he would rectify the situation. Subsequently, Greer deposited funds into the IOLTA account after securing a bank loan and issued multiple checks to cover the bounced check. Despite this, the investigation revealed that Greer had been transferring significant amounts of money from his IOLTA account to his operating account for personal use, totaling over $87,000 between January 2020 and November 2021.
In February 2023, the Lawyer Disciplinary Board (LDB) charged Greer with violations of the West Virginia Rules of Professional Conduct, specifically for commingling and misappropriating client funds. During the hearings, Greer admitted to not having reconciled his IOLTA account for over a decade and acknowledged transferring client funds to cover his operational expenses without proper accounting.
The Hearing Panel Subcommittee (HPS) initially recommended a six-month suspension for Greer, suggesting he attend Continuing Legal Education on law office management and employ a bookkeeper to manage his accounts properly. However, the ODC contested this recommendation, arguing for the annulment of Greer’s law license, citing the seriousness of the violations.
In its ruling, the Supreme Court of Appeals emphasized that it is the final arbiter of legal ethics and highlighted the gravity of Greer’s misappropriation of client funds, stating that such actions typically warrant disbarment unless compelling mitigating factors are present. The Court found that Greer knowingly misused funds entrusted to him and failed to uphold his fiduciary duties, which not only harmed his clients but also undermined public trust in the legal profession.
The Disposition states:
“We reject the recommendation of the HPS and annul Mr. Greer’s law license. Mr. Greer must comply with the terms of 3.28 of the Rules of Lawyer Disciplinary Procedure. The costs of this proceeding are to be assessed against Mr. Greer.”
According to avvo.com, Mr, Greer was a litigation attorney in Bridgeport, West Virginia. He attended the West Virginia University College of Law, graduating in 1987. He acquired his law license in West Virginia in 1991.
A copy of the original filing can be found here.
