Unauthorized Practice of Law Committee of the Supreme Court of Colorado v. Grimes

759 P.2d 1, 12 Brief Times Rptr. 480, 1988 Colo. LEXIS 37, 1988 WL 25115
CourtSupreme Court of Colorado
DecidedMarch 28, 1988
DocketNo. 82SA94
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 759 P.2d 1 (Unauthorized Practice of Law Committee of the Supreme Court of Colorado v. Grimes) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Colorado primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Unauthorized Practice of Law Committee of the Supreme Court of Colorado v. Grimes, 759 P.2d 1, 12 Brief Times Rptr. 480, 1988 Colo. LEXIS 37, 1988 WL 25115 (Colo. 1988).

Opinion

PER CURIAM.

This case is a sequel to our 1982 decision in Unauthorized Practice of Law Committee v. Grimes, 654 P.2d 822 (Colo.1982). In 1987 we issued rules to show cause why the respondent, Richard 0. Grimes, should not be held in contempt for engaging in the unauthorized practice of law in violation of this court’s prior orders enjoining him from such conduct. After Grimes filed a response to the show cause orders, the case was referred to a hearing master pursuant to C.R.C.P. 238(d). The hearing master has filed findings, conclusions, and a recommendation with respect to Grimes’ alleged contemptuous conduct. We now adopt the findings, conclusions, and recommendation of the hearing master and discharge the rules to show cause subject to the conditions contained in this opinion.

On November 29, 1982, we issued a decision adjudicating Grimes in contempt of court and permanently enjoined him from continuing to engage in the unauthorized practice of law. Our decision was based on the fact that Grimes, although never having been admitted or registered to practice law in this state, “accepted fees and prepared legal motions, notices, and other memoranda for various individuals and also advised members of the public as to what he thought their legal rights and obligations were.” Grimes, 654 P.2d at 825. We imposed a fine on Grimes in the amount of $500, ordered him to pay costs of $901.87, and sentenced him to six months in the county jail with all but 90 days suspended on the condition that he not practice law or perform any services constituting the practice of law. Shortly after the issuance of our decision, Grimes and the Disciplinary Prosecutor filed a joint motion requesting that we order Grimes’ immediate release from jail subject to Grimes’ compliance with various conditions calculated to ensure that he would not further engage in the unauthorized practice of law. On December 23, 1982, we ordered that Grimes be released from confinement subject to the following conditions, all of which were agreed to by Grimes and the Disciplinary Prosecutor in their joint motion:

1. That the respondent is granted credit against the ninety-day jail sentence imposed and against the total confinement ordered and the remainder of the sentence is suspended on the condi[2]*2tion that the respondent not engage in the practice of law or violate the restraining order and injunction issued by this Court on November 29, 1982.
2. That respondent pay the fine of $500 and costs in the amount of $901.87 within six months from November 29, 1982.
3. That any forms sold by the respondent will be approved by the disciplinary prosecutors in writing before the forms are offered for sale or filled in by the respondent.
4. That respondent will provide the disciplinary prosecutors with the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of all persons who purchased his forms on the first day of each month for a period of two years commencing on January 1, 1983, together with all forms filled in by the respondent.
a. That respondent will not as a scrivener advise any person as to the manner in which the forms he sells should be completed.
5. That the respondent will provide the disciplinary prosecutors with all newspaper advertising subscribed to by the respondent on the first day of each month for a period of two years from and after January 1, 1983.
a. That respondent will revise his advertisements to reflect that he is only selling forms.
6. That the suspension of the remainder of the jail sentence imposed upon the respondent is conditioned upon the faithful performance of the conditions set forth in this order and the violation of any one of the conditions will result in the respondent serving the remainder of the sentence upon the presentation of proof by the disciplinary prosecutors that the terms of this order have been violated.

On February 10, 1987, the Disciplinary Prosecutor, on behalf of the Unauthorized Practice of Law Committee, petitioned this court to issue a citation ordering Grimes to show cause why he should not be held in contempt and be subject to fine or imprisonment, or both, for violating this court’s previous orders enjoining him from engaging in the unauthorized practice of law. The petition alleged, in pertinent part, as follows:

Two dissolution matters came on before Referee David R. Costello, Jr., on July 16, 1986: Bracken and Bracken, Case No. 86DR1469, Denver District Court; and Dabreau and Dabreau, Case No. 86DR1311, Denver District Court. In the Dabreau case, respondent [Grimes] determined that the parties should be designated co-petitioners based on information he gained from Mr. and Mrs. Dabreau. [Grimes] charged $300 for each case and furnished the parties dissolution forms which he purchased at Bradford Publishing Company. One of the parties in each case knew of the date of the hearing and appeared that day. Referee Costello, however, found insufficient and improper notice to the second parties in each case and vacated the hearings. Subsequently, in each case, [Grimes] prepared, signed, filed, and mailed notices, including notices to set and notices of hearing. To date, neither case is set for hearing, and in both cases the interests of a minor child are involved. Three of the four parties are now living out of state, and it seems unlikely that these cases will proceed to final disposition, except at considerable expense to the parties should they choose to return to Colorado to finalize these proceedings.

Subsequent to the issuance of that citation, the Disciplinary Prosecutor filed another petition for a contempt citation predicated on the following allegations:

Respondent [Grimes] as scrivener in a dissolution of marriage proceeding, prepared, notarized, and filed forms on behalf of both parties, Donald Dean Rhea, petitioner, and Jacqueline Sue Rhea, co-petitioner, In re the Marriage of Donald Dean Rhea and Jacqueline Susan Rhea, 85DR4986, Denver District Court.
On or about November 21, 1985, [Grimes] filed a one-page letter addressed “To Whom It May Concern" advocating custody of the minor child of [3]*3the parties be awarded to the petitioner, Donald Dean Rhea. By filing the letter, [Grimes] became a representative and asserted a position on behalf of Mr. Rhea. Further, Mr. Rhea did not request custody of the minor child.

We issued citations ordering Grimes to show cause why he should not be held in contempt and punished accordingly, and we ordered both citations consolidated and referred the matter to a hearing master.

The hearing master met with Grimes and the Disciplinary Prosecutor on June 15, 1987.

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Bluebook (online)
759 P.2d 1, 12 Brief Times Rptr. 480, 1988 Colo. LEXIS 37, 1988 WL 25115, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/unauthorized-practice-of-law-committee-of-the-supreme-court-of-colorado-v-colo-1988.