Attorney Who Shares Office Space Is Not Independent Counsel

A Maryland court of appeals holds that an attorney who drafted a will that included a bequest to himself violated the rules of professional conduct and that the attorney who reviewed the will was not independent because he shared office space with the drafting attorney. Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland v. Saridakis (Md. Ct. App., No. 25, Dec. 7, 2007).

Wylette Speed hired attorney Anthony Saridakis to assist her with estate planning matters. Mrs. Speed decided she wanted to draft a new will that included Mr. Saridakis as a beneficiary of her residuary estate. Mr. Saridakis informed her she would need to consult with another attorney. Because Mrs. Speed did not know any other attorneys, Mr. Saridakis recommended Richard Lawlor, an attorney that shared office space, though not clients, with him. Mr. Lawlor met with Mrs. Speed, determined she was of sound mind, and witnessed her signature on the new will. After Mrs. Speed died, Mr. Saridakis inherited from her residuary estate.

The Maryland attorney grievance commission filed a petition against Mr. Saridakis for violating professional rules of conduct. Professional rules prohibit an attorney from drafting an instrument for a client that gives the attorney a substantial gift unless the client is represented by independent counsel. The trial court found that Mr. Lawlor was an independent counsel, so Mr. Saridakis did not violate rules of professional conduct.

The Maryland Court of Appeals finds Mr. Saridakis did violate rules of professional conduct. According to the court, an attorney who shares space with the attorney-drafter of the will does not qualify as independent counsel to the client. However, the court holds that because Mr. Saridakis made a good faith effort to comply, the commission should dismiss the petition with a warning.

To download the full text of this decision in PDF format, go to: https://mdcourts.gov/opinions/coa/2007/25a06ag.pdf                                                                        (If you do not have the free PDF reader installed on your computer, download it here.)

Did you know that the ElderLawAnswers database now contains summaries of nearly 2,000 fully searchable elder law decisions dating back to 1993? To search the database, click here.