NOTICE OF REVOCATION AND RESTITUTION (By Consent)
Case Nos. 99-049-GA Issued: December 29, 1999 John E. Stover, P-24281, Oxford, Michigan by the Attorney Discipline Board Tri-County Hearing Panel #77.
1) Revocation; 2) Effective March 30, 1998. The respondent and the Grievance Administrator submitted a stipulation for consent order of discipline in accordance with MCR 9.115(f)(5). The stipulation was approved by the Attorney Grievance Commission and was accepted by a hearing panel. Respondent entered a plea of no contest to the allegations of professional misconduct contained in Formal Complaint 99-049-GA, to wit: that in his representation of defendant in a civil matter, respondent failed to comply with his client s request to file a counter-claim, accepted a mediation evaluation without the prior knowledge or consent of his client and failed to keep his client reasonably informed regarding the status of the matter; in his representation of the client in another matter, respondent failed to take action to protect his client s interests and abandoned the representation without notice to the client; in his representation of the plaintiff in a civil matter, respondent failed to inform his client of the mediation evaluation, stipulated to the dismissal of the matter without his client s consent and made false statements to the client regarding the status of that case; respondent accepted payments of $7,500.00 in settlement of his client s claims but failed to maintain the funds as a fiduciary and misappropriated those funds; and failed to return unearned fees. Respondent s conduct was alleged to be in violation of MCR 9.104(1)-(4) and Michigan Rules of Professional Conduct 1.1(a)-(c); 1.3; 1.4(a); 3.2; 3.3(a) and (c); 1.15(a)-(c); 1.16(d and 8.4(a)-(c).
The parties agreed that respondent may be subject to an order revoking his license to practice law effective March 30, 1998, the effective date of a prior suspension of five years imposed in Grievance Administrator v John Stover, Case No. 98- 126-JC. The parties further stipulated that respondent shall make restitution in the amount of $7,500.00 to the complainant. Costs were assessed in the amount of $92.38.
1 Respondent s license has been continuously suspended since September 21, 1998. See Notice of Revocation and Restitution
dated December 2, 1998, Case Nos. 98-143-GA; 98-166-FA.