NOTICE OF REPRIMAND AND RESTITUTION (By Consent)
Case No. 01-19-GA Notice Issued: August 2, 2001 David C. Ritchie, P-46553, Ypsilanti, Michigan, by the Attorney Discipline Board Washtenaw County Hearing Panel #2.
1. Reprimand; 2. Effective July 31, 2001. The respondent and the Grievance Administrator filed a stipulation for a consent order of discipline in accordance with MCR 9.115(f)(5) which was approved by the Attorney Grievance Commission and accepted by the hearing panel. Respondent pled no contest to the allegations of professional misconduct contained in Counts Four, Five, Six, Seven and Eight of Formal Complaint 01-19-GA, specifically: In a fee dispute arbitration, respondent failed to make any payments as required by the agreement. Respondent failed to file answers on behalf of his client in two matters and allowed default judgments to be entered against his client. Respondent also failed to set aside the defaults or to otherwise defend his client. With respect to the same client, respondent failed to repay any monies to his client to satisfy the default judgments against his client. With respect to a $2,000.00 loan from his client, respondent failed to repay the loan and failed to reduce the loan to writing. Finally, respondent failed to produce his client files in response to a request for investigation served upon him by the Grievance Administrator. Respondent=s conduct was in violation of MCR 9.104(1)-(4); and Michigan Rules of Professional Conduct 1.1(c); 1.2(a); 1.3; 1.4; 1.8(a); 1.16(d); 3.2; 8.1(b); and 8.4(a)-(c). The parties agreed that respondent may be reprimanded and that Counts One, Two and Three of Formal Complaint 01-19-GA may be dismissed. The parties further agreed that respondent shall pay restitution.
The hearing panel ordered that respondent be reprimanded and that he pay restitution in the aggregate amount of $20,450.97. Cost were assessed in the amount of $86.05.