Kentucky Bar Ass'n v. Terrell

891 S.W.2d 403, 1995 Ky. LEXIS 5, 1995 WL 19591
CourtKentucky Supreme Court
DecidedJanuary 19, 1995
DocketNo. 94-SC-758-KB
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 891 S.W.2d 403 (Kentucky Bar Ass'n v. Terrell) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Kentucky Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Kentucky Bar Ass'n v. Terrell, 891 S.W.2d 403, 1995 Ky. LEXIS 5, 1995 WL 19591 (Ky. 1995).

Opinion

OPINION AND ORDER

The Board of Governors of the Kentucky Bar Association, as a result of charges instigated against the respondent, Peggy Leigh Terrell, has recommended that she be suspended from the practice of law in the Commonwealth of Kentucky for a period of two years. Terrell was charged with violating the canons of professional ethics in one count in KBA File 3377 and three counts in KBA File 3470. The charges were consolidated.

Terrell was found guilty as to File 3377 of violating SCR 3.130-3.3(a) and SCR 3.130-8.3(c) by making a false statement of material fact to the Kentucky Court of Appeals in her “show cause statement” filed with that court. She was also found guilty as to File 3470, Count I, of violating SCR 3.130-1.3 and SCR 3.130-3.2 by failing to act with reasonable diligence and promptness in representing a client and failing to make reason[404]*404able efforts to expedite litigation consistent with the interest of the client, and she was found guilty as to File 3470, Count II, of failing to provide competent representation to a client in violation' of SCR 3.130-1.1. Terrell was found not guilty of the final charge, File 3470, Count III, engaging in conduct involving dishonesty, deceit or misrepresentation by indicating to her clients that she was trying to obtain a court date when the case had already been dismissed.

All of the charges arise out of Terrell’s representation of Gregory and Anita Elkins in litigation against a power company for its having allegedly trespassed on the Elkins’ property and destroyed trees while putting in power lines. Terrell filed a complaint against the power company in Menifee Circuit Court on June 29, 1989. Terrell performed no discovery prior to filing a motion for summary judgment on March 9, 1990, which was to be heard on April 6, 1990. In its response to the complaint, the power company had admitted removing some timber and underbrush on the property but had denied all the other allegations. A substantial controversy clearly existed when the motion for summary judgment was filed.

On April 6, 1990, the day her summary judgment motion was to be heard, Terrell claims she was ill and had her office call the clerk. The judge rescheduled the hearing, but ordered that the motion would be overruled unless Terrell appeared at such hearing. Terrell notified all attorneys involved that she had a scheduling conflict for the new hearing date. An agreed order of continuance was entered and all involved agreed not to push the motion for summary judgment until discovery was completed.

At a discovery conference on June 26, 1990, a pre-trial conference was scheduled for October 5, 1990 with the trial being scheduled for October 10, 1990. Terrell moved for a continuance of the trial date because discovery had not been completed. On July 26,' 1991, Terrell took the deposition of an employee of the defendant and determined that a key witness and former employee, whose deposition she felt was important, had moved to Florida.

On April 7, 1992, after a new circuit judge was elected and pursuant to instructions from the Administrative Office of the Courts, the court filed a notice to show cause why the case should not be dismissed for failure to prosecute to be heard on April 15, 1992. On April 23, 1992, the case was dismissed for lack of prosecution. Terrell claims she was hospitalized when the court’s motion to show cause was filed and she requested her office staff to contact the court and clients to notify them of her problems and specifically mentioned this case. Terrell claims her staff called the judge’s office and was informed that the show cause notice would be continued. The judge’s staff recalls the phone call, but disputes that they advised Terrell’s office the notice would automatically be continued. The judge’s staff recalled that Terrell’s office was advised to send a letter to the Menifee Circuit Clerk’s office and have it placed in the record asking the case be passed until the following motion day. Such a letter was never sent.

After the case was dismissed on April 23, Terrell again had her office call the judge’s office. Her office staff was advised to file a motion to set aside the dismissal order and notice it for the following motion day. Terrell filed a motion to vacate on May 7, 1992, to be heard on May 20, 1992. Terrell failed to appear on May 20, 1992, and on June 2, 1992, the judge entered a final order of dismissal overruling the motion to vacate.

On June 19, 1992, Terrell filed a notice of appeal. On August 20, 1992, the Court of Appeals entered an order to show cause why the appeal should not be dismissed for failure to file the required prehearing statement. On August 27, 1992, Terrell filed a “Show Cause Statement” claiming she had been unable to obtain the appropriate prehearing statement forms. After receiving no pre-hearing statement, on October 12, 1992, the Court of Appeals entered an order dismissing the appeal for failure to file a preheating statement.

Terrell filed a motion for reconsideration in the Court of Appeals. On October 22, 1992, the Court of Appeals entered a deficiency order and returned the motion because it lacked a filing fee, the appropriate [405]*405copies, and a certificate of service as required by the Kentucky Rules of Civil Procedure. On October 30, 1992, Terrell filed a motion for reconsideration and, for the first time, tendered a prehearing statement. On January 11, 1993, the Court of Appeals entered an order denying the motion for reconsideration and determined that dismissal was a justified penalty as no excusable neglect for the failure to tender a prehearing statement had been shown.

In the “Show Cause Statement” Terrell filed with the Court of Appeals, she stated:

That the counsel for Appellant, Gregory Elkins, has been trying to obtain a copy of the ACO-070 1-85 Court of Appeals of Kentucky Civil Appeal Prehearing Statement form as required by (CR 76.14) from various places and has been informed that either they are out of said forms and awaiting some to be sent to them or the whereabouts of said forms are unknown to the clerks at the office. I have requested that said form be sent to my office and stressed the importance of same.

Terrell claims that in past cases she has been sent the prehearing statement form by circuit clerks’ offices when she has filed an appeal and that the Menifee Circuit Court did not do this. She further claims that she attempted to get the form from the Rowan Circuit Clerk’s office but was advised they could not be found and was told on a number of occasions to come back later.

The KBA took the depositions of three persons from the Menifee Circuit Clerk’s office and five persons from the Rowan Circuit Clerk’s office. None of them recalled Terrell or anyone from her office requesting a prehearing statement form and none recalled any attorneys indicating they had tried to obtain a prehearing statement form and had been unable to do so. The deposition testimony indicated that the Rowan Circuit Clerk’s office had approximately 350 of the forms and that the office policy was to keep a minimum of 200 of the infrequently used forms. The Menifee Circuit Clerk’s office had 50 to 60 forms, of which they use approximately 2 to 3 per year, and the office also has a form book from which they can make copies if any forms run out.

Terrell claims her due process rights were violated because she “only received a part of the original complaint filed by Mr. Elkins” in File 3470 and she filed her response based on that partial complaint.

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Related

Turner v. KENTUCKY BAR ASS'N
308 S.W.3d 218 (Kentucky Supreme Court, 2010)
Caldwell v. Commonwealth
157 S.W.3d 215 (Court of Appeals of Kentucky, 2004)
Terrell v. Kentucky Bar Ass'n
916 S.W.2d 777 (Kentucky Supreme Court, 1996)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
891 S.W.2d 403, 1995 Ky. LEXIS 5, 1995 WL 19591, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/kentucky-bar-assn-v-terrell-ky-1995.