Petition for Emergency Suspension
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IN THE SUPREME COURT OF FLORIDA THE FLORIDA BAR, Supreme Court Case No. SC- Petitioner, The Florida Bar File v. No. 2018-30,452 (19A) (CES) ELIZABETH JAYNE ANDERSON, Respondent. _____________________________/ PETITION FOR EMERGENCY SUSPENSION This petition of The Florida Bar seeks emergency relief and requires the immediate attention of the court pursuant to R. Regulating Fla. Bar 3-5.2. The Florida Bar seeks the emergency suspension of Elizabeth Jayne Anderson, Attorney No. 626351, from the practice of law in Florida based on facts that establish clearly and convincingly that Elizabeth Jayne Anderson appears to be causing great public harm by engaging in a pattern of misappropriating client trust funds and neglecting client matters. Those facts are supported by the affidavit of Branch Auditor Matthew D. Herdeker, CPA, attached hereto as Exhibit "A," the transcript of respondent’s sworn statement dated August 1, 2018 (without exhibits), attached hereto as Exhibit “B,” and The Florida Bar Inquiry/Complaint Form received by The Florida Bar from Natasha Takhsha, Director of Stoneybrook 1 West Master Association, Inc. dated November 13, 2017 attached as Exhibit “C” and demonstrate the following: 1. The filing of this Petition for Emergency Suspension has been authorized by the Executive Director of The Florida Bar. 2. Respondent, Elizabeth Jayne Anderson, is and at all times hereinafter mentioned, was a member of The Florida Bar and subject to the jurisdiction and disciplinary rules of the Supreme Court of Florida. 3. Respondent currently is the subject of a bar disciplinary matter which has been assigned The Florida Bar file number 2018-30,452 (19A). 4. The Bar's investigation of this matter found that respondent has misappropriated client trust funds and engaged in a pattern of neglecting client matters. 5. After receiving The Florida Bar Inquiry/Complaint Form by Natasha Takhsha, Director of Stoneybrook West Master Association, The Florida Bar conducted an audit of respondent’s trust accounts for the time period of December 1, 2013 through April 30, 2018. In addition, the bar conducted a review of respondent’s law office operating account for the time period of December 1, 2013 through April 30, 2018. 6. During the audit period, respondent maintained a total of seven trust accounts: 2 a. The Anderson Legal Group trust account maintained at Northern Trust Company, opened in April 2010 and closed in November 2014. b. The Anderson Legal Group trust account maintained at Fairwinds Credit Union, opened prior to December 2013. c. The Anderson Legal Group trust account maintained at Seaside National Bank, opened in June 2014. d. The Anderson Legal Group trust account maintained at SunTrust Bank, opened November 2014 and closed in December 2016. e. Anderson Hew, PLLC real estate trust account maintained at Florida Community Bank opened October 2016. f. Anderson Hew, PLLC wire trust account maintained at Florida Community Bank opened October 2016. g. Anderson Hew, PLLC general trust account maintained at Florida Community Bank opened October 2016. 7. Respondent formed The Anderson Legal Group, LLC in 2010 and maintained trust accounts at Seaside National Bank & Trust, Northern Trust Co., SunTrust Bank and Fairwinds Credit Union. Respondent was the only authorized signatory on the accounts except for a brief period of time when respondent was out of the country and authorized her office manager, Cynthia Pischetola, to make disbursements from the trust account maintained at Fairwinds Credit Union. 3 8. At the time respondent opened her trust account for Anderson Legal at Fairwinds Credit Union prior to December 2013, the Rules Regulating The Florida Bar did not permit attorneys to maintain attorney trust accounts at credit unions and respondent failed to provide The Florida Bar Foundation with the required notice of this account. 9. In October 2016, respondent and attorney Jessica K. Hew formed Anderson Hew, PLLC. Anderson Hew, PLLC maintained three trust accounts at Florida Community Bank. Respondent and Ms. Hew were the only authorized signers on the firm’s trust accounts. Respondent and Ms. Hew terminated their partnership effective December 31, 2017. Representation of Stoneybrook West Master Association 10. On or about December 16, 2013, Stoneybrook West Master Association (hereinafter referred to as “Stoneybrook”), a homeowners’ association, hired respondent’s law firm, The Anderson Legal Group, to represent it in various legal matters including, but not limited to, collections, claims of lien, foreclosures, workouts, mediation, violations of the Declaration of Covenants and Restrictions, demand letters, attendance at board meetings, bylaws violations, annual elections, and any other matters involving the homeowners’ association that the Board of Directors deemed necessary. 4 11. Stoneybrook terminated respondent’s services in or around August 2017 due to ongoing issues with lack of diligence, lack of communication, lack of timely and accurate billing statements, and failure to provide timely and accurate accountings of the funds respondent collected on behalf of Stoneybrook. Upon termination, respondent failed to provide Stoneybrook with its files in a timely manner, failed to provide Stoneybrook with an accounting of the funds respondent was holding in trust in connection with her representation of the homeowners’ association, and failed to remit trust funds to Stoneybrook’s new counsel in a timely manner. 12. From December 2013 to August 2017 during respondent’s representation of Stoneybrook, only seven lien foreclosures were commenced and none of the cases were prosecuted. Service of process was not completed on some files, the court dismissed some of the cases for lack of prosecution, and in one case, the subject property changed ownership. Based on the timing of the foreclosure filings, it appeared respondent commenced them only after Stoneybrook began questioning respondent about the collection files. 13. Respondent failed to provide Stoneybrook with a timely and accurate accounting of the retainer paid by Stoneybrook at the outset of the representation in 2013. 5 14. Respondent used The Anderson Legal Group trust account at Seaside Bank for all matters concerning her representation of Stoneybrook. Seaside Trust Account 15. Respondent failed to label the Seaside account as a trust account as required. 16. Respondent failed to maintain the backs of cancelled checks for the Seaside account as required. 17. Entries in the ledger cards for the Seaside trust account did not consistently contain reasons for transactions as required. 18. Respondent’s reconciliations for the Seaside account reconciliations for July 2014 and December 2014 did not identify outstanding checks by date and check number as required. 19. Respondent did not provide monthly comparisons for the Seaside account as required. 20. The bar’s audit determined that, as of February 23, 2018, there was a shortage of approximately $37,000.00 in the Seaside trust account, representing trust account funds belonging to Stoneybrook which respondent was required to promptly turn over to Stoneybrook’s new counsel. 21. On February 23, 2018, the beginning daily balance in the Seaside trust account was $1,543.54. 6 22. On February 23, 2018, respondent deposited a total of $37,000.00, which she received as a loan from her parents, into her Seaside trust account. The ending daily bank balance in the account was $38,543.54. On February 27, 2018, respondent used the funds she received from her parents to wire $37,870.03 to Neil A. Saydah, P.A., the new attorney for Stoneybrook. Based on respondent’s ledger cards for Stoneybrook matters, the payment was for balances totaling $50,309.04 she owed to Stoneybrook in thirty matters, offset by overpayments to Stoneybrook totaling $12,439.01 in sixteen matters. 23. During her sworn statement on August 1, 2018, respondent admitted to the shortage in her Seaside trust account and stated that she would not have been able to pay the balances she owed to Stoneybrook without obtaining either the loan from her parents or using funds from her retirement account. 24. During her sworn statement on August 1, 2018, respondent testified under oath that the shortages in her Seaside trust account were the result of some deposits related to Stoneybrook being deposited to her law office operating account at Fairwinds Credit Union and some deposits related to Stoneybrook not being deposited at all. Respondent testified that this situation was the result of errors committed by her nonlawyer employees. 7 25. During her sworn statement on August 1, 2018, respondent admitted that the Stoneybrook funds that were deposited to her Fairwinds Credit Union operating account were no longer available. 26. The bar’s audit of respondent’s Fairwinds Credit Union operating account determined that between May 1, 2017 and February 27, 2018, the ending daily bank balance ranged between -$105.00 and $366.41. 27. Respondent engaged in a course of conduct in connection with her Seaside trust account whereby she utilized Stoneybrook trust funds for her own benefit and/or for the benefit of her law firm. 28. On or around January 12, 2015, respondent issued a check for $10,000.00 from her Seaside trust account, payable to Anderson Legal Group. The memo line was blank. The check cleared on January 13, 2015. Respondent recorded this check in the Belle Isle Bayou client ledger, which had a balance of -$5,579.84 before the payment. The $10,000.00 payment increased the negative balance to -$15,579.84. No funds were available from the Belle Isle Bayou matter for respondent to use. 29. Respondent testified during her August 1, 2018 sworn statement that she believed the $10,000.00 payment was for her legal fees. Respondent stated that the Belle Isle Bayou matter was not related to Stoneybrook. Instead, it was a commercial real estate closing. 8 30. Respondent testified during her August 1, 2018 sworn statement that her Seaside trust account was used only for Stoneybrook matters.