Kentucky Law Review

Courier-Journal: "Lawyers Winters & Yonker are suspended; firm's TV ads are off the air"

If trouble comes in threes, we had number one with the appointment of Mr. Glover as bar counsel (Courier-Journal: "New Kentucky bar counsel once complained of changes brought by women lawyers").

Trouble number two in the ethics arena was sent up to Kentucky by way of Florida with a less than flattering story on local law firm Winters and Yonker, now Winters  Yonker and Kannaday.

Note the perplexing response by the KBA President that "it is monitoring the situation and if the firm advertises in Kentucky during the suspensions, it will be reported to the Florida bar." Tattling to the teacher is not a fine way of enforcing the rules in Kentucky. 

What is trouble number three?  Well, I would submit that the nearly cavalier responses by the KBA President would be right up there. 

Here is a link to the various KENTUCKY Supreme Court rules on the practice of law.

Another probing story by Courier-Journal reporter Andrew Wolfson:

Lawyers Winters & Yonker are suspended; firm's TV ads are off the air

The ubiquitous commercials for Winters & Yonker have been pulled from the airwaves in Louisville and Florida after the Tampa attorneys who head the law firm were suspended for misconduct.

Known in Louisville as Winters Yonker & Kannady, the firm spent $651,000 on 12,212 spots in the Louisville market in the first eight months of this year alone, not counting any discounts they may have received, according to the Neilsen Co., which tracks TV advertising.

William Winters and Marc Yonker, who promote themselves as the “aggressive attorneys,” were suspended for 91 days and 60 days respectively earlier this month by the Florida Supreme Court, which found they acted too aggressively when the stole clients from their former boss 11 years ago to start their own firm.

The court found that the pair had committed a criminal act reflecting on a lawyer’s “honesty, trustworthiness or fitness” and that they were guilty of other conduct involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit or misrepresentation.

They are barred from seeking new business or advertising in Florida during their suspensions, according to Kenneth Lawrence Marvin, staff counsel for the Florida State Bar.

Neither are licensed in Kentucky but Matthew Kannady, who is licensed here and is a partner in the Louisville office, said the firm decided to pull its ads in the Louisville “because we didn’t want to step on any toes in Florida.”

The law firm also has taken its web site off line in Florida and Kentucky, although it is still open for business in Louisville, Kannady said.

W. Douglas Myers, president of the Kentucky Bar Association, said it is monitoring the situation and if the firm advertises in Kentucky during the suspensions, it will be reported to the Florida bar.

Kannady declined to comment on whether the firm is still receiving referrals from 1-800-ASK-GARY, which advertises heavily.

click on heading for remainder of story.

Here is link to Florida Supreme Court opinion.

Courier-Journal: "New Kentucky bar counsel once complained of changes brought by women lawyers"

Read this story, and you say to yourself. 

Why?

With the profession getting hits for actions of prior bar counsel and Kentucky Bar Association officers, why?

With over 40 candidates vying for this position, is this the best we got seeking this position? 

Why?

With  over 17,000 lawyers in the state, is this the best we have to be in charge of our ethical standards?

Why?

I do not know which is the most egregious conclusion:

A.  He said it.

B.   The KBA hired him knowing he said it.

C.   The President of the KBA "found it didn't amount to anything."

D.   None of the other 40 seeking the job were better qualified.

E.   All of the above.

Mr. Glover might be a fine attorney and a fine human being today, but our bar counsel should be made of cleaner stuff and be beyond suspicion.

Now what?

It's the KBA, an organization in and of itself.  Required and regulated by the Kentucky Supreme Court and membership by all lawyers is mandatory.

Maybe, I should be quiet?  Why?  Why not!! 

New Kentucky bar counsel once complained of changes brought by women lawyers

Kentucky’s new chief bar counsel, who will oversee discipline of the state’s 17,164 attorneys, once blamed problems in the legal profession on the influx of women lawyers.

A 1994 column Thomas “Tommy” Glover wrote as president of the Fayette County Bar Association in its newsletter, appeared to bemoan the changes brought by more women practicing law.

Glover noted in the column that the percentage of women lawyers had risen dramatically since he entered the profession in 1975 and that for a number of attorneys “the new order is disturbing.”

The column goes on to say that “women speak the law unlike men do. Not better, different.” Glover also said that “humor has atrophied” and that “the comradeship that once existed is gone.”

“Jokes have been altered, poker isn’t played at the bar picnic...and the manner and method of practicing law has been changed, forever,” Glover wrote.

Glover’s column prompted an uproar from women lawyers in Lexington at the time, and he later wrote that he hadn’t intended to suggest that the “growing incivility in the law practice” is the fault of women lawyers. “To those who took offense, I apologize,” he said.

Doug Myers, president of the Kentucky Bar Association, which hired Glover for the $95,000-a-year job from a field of 40 applicants, said he was alerted to the column in advance and questioned Glover and others about it.

“His explanation to me was that he was writing about two things -- changes in the profession and women lawyers -- and that he mixed up the two subjects and they bled into one another,” Myers said.

click on heading for rest of Mr. Wolfson's story.

click on Kentucky Bar Association hires Thomas Glover as chief disciplinary counsel for story re his hiring

KBA: Quit going postal and save a penny, save a tree, and get your CLE notices via email via email and not

Pinch some pennies and allow your bar dues to go further than killing trees.  Go green!

"Join many other KBA members, and sign up today to have your CLE notifications sent to your e-mail address of record. This action will help eliminate excess paper, create a convenient electronic record for your files, and save the association thousands of dollars allocated to mailing this paper file each year.

Just e-mail us a brief note at cle_reg@kybar.org indicating “I grant the KBA permission to e-mail my CLE notifications to me.”

To check your e-mail address on record with the KBA, login and look yourself up on the website using Lawyer Locator under the Membership Menu.

The e-mail address listed is the one used for your CLE notifications. If you want to change your e-mail address on record, fill out the online address form by clicking the box marked “Request for Address Change.”

ABA News: Kentucky Death Penalty System

Kentucky Death Penalty  is subject of American Bar Association report. 

"The American Bar Association Releases Report on Kentucky’s Death Penalty Systems

The American Bar Association recently released their report, “Evaluating Fairness and Accuracy In State Death Penalty Systems: The Kentucky Death Penalty Assessment Report.” To access the Executive Summary that highlights the findings of the full report, click here. To access the full report, click here"

KBA News: 2012 Kentuck Law Update Dates Now Posted

Gentlemen, (and women), start your engines (or mark your calendars) for the dates and locations for you to get your 2012 continuing legal education credits - FREE! (well, free to the extent you don't have to pay anything further than your share of your bar dues).

"DATES APPROVED FOR 2012 KENTUCKY LAW UPDATE

The 2012 dates for the KBA’s Kentucky Law Update (KLU) were recently approved by the Supreme Court of Kentucky. They include: September 6-7, Bowling Green, Holiday Inn & Sloan Convention Center; September 19-20, Covington, Northern Kentucky Convention Center; September 25-26, Russell (Ashland), Bellefonte Pavilion; October 2-3, Prestonsburg, Jenny Wiley State Resort Park; October 9-10, Owensboro, RiverPark Center; October 23-24, Gilbertsville, Kentucky Dam Village State Resort Park; October 30-31, Lexington, Lexington Convention Center; November 8-9, London, London Community Center; November 28-29, Louisville, Kentucky International Convention Center.

Registration for the 2012 KLU will begin in May; additional information will be posted on the website under CLE – Kentucky Law Update.

The KBA staff hopes to build upon the success of the 2011 KLU, which enjoyed the largest turnout ever in the history of the event, with a total of 5,191 attorneys receiving Continuing Legal Education (CLE) training at nine locations across the Commonwealth. The 2011 turnout represents a 1.8 percent increase over the 2010 attendance and a more than 132 percent increase over the program’s initial 2,236 attendance when KLU was introduced in 1987.

KLU is a unique benefit of KBA membership, as Kentucky is the only mandatory CLE state that provides members with a means of meeting their mandatory CLE hours without requiring additional payment. For more information on KLU, contact Jennifer Keitz at jkeitz@kybar.org or call (502) 564-3795, ext. 226."

KBA NEWS: CaseMake Legal Research Update, or "CaseMaker, CaseMaker, Give a case, Win Me Fee . . . , (sung to the tune of "MatchMaker")

More KBA News.  Legal research provided free (but paid from  your annual dues) is CaseMaker (tm).  Although, I would have preferred my dollars going to FastCase (tm) instead, CaseMaker continues to get tweaked and expanded, but is it ready for the big leagues yet? 

Are  you prepared to put your professional reputation in those search results? 

Well, let us know with some comments.

"

 

 

Casemaker’s newest version of its legal research software is available now to KBA members! Inside are features that Kentucky attorneys have been asking for:

• Get faster search results with a more intuitive interface
• Personalized search history, save and reuse your research
• Save research in folders organized your way.

The New Casemaker search bar is now modeled closely on Google’s™ familiar search and appears at the top of every page. You can use simple queries or enter complex search language. Once the results are delivered, intuitive filters help narrow results. The New Casemaker is loaded with organization features and helps you consolidate work in one convenient location. (Note: Mobile users are still accessing Casemaker 2.2, which is being kept current until the new mobile app is ready.)

Access the New Casemaker on the KBA’s homepage by clicking here.

"

KBA NEWS: Hey lawyers, meet your 2012 Kentucky Bar Association Board of Governor who will be running the show and spending your dues

Here's  your board (for the Kentucky Bar Association) for 2012.  I said board, not bored, so quit  your yawing.  Maybe this will be the year that the samo-samo ways of the past, give way to the ways of the new with a focus on the individual members of the bar and not just the folks known as "big law".

Well, one can dream.  Here they are:

"JOHNSON, KERRICK ELECTED DURING RECENT KBA ELECTION

William E. “Bill” Johnson of Frankfort has been elected to the KBA Office of Vice-President and Thomas N. Kerrick of Bowling Green has been elected KBA Bar Governor, 2nd Supreme Court District (SCD), following a recent tabulation of votes certified by a canvassing board at the Ky. Bar Center in Frankfort. A swearing-in ceremony will be held during the Annual Banquet scheduled in conjunction with the KBA’s Annual Convention on Thursday, June 7, at the Galt House in Louisville. The following officers and bar governors will take office effective July 1; the officers will serve a one-year term ending June 30, 2013. The bar governors listed below will serve a two-year term ending on June 30, 2014:

Officers
President W. Douglas Myers, Hopkinsville
President-Elect Thomas L. Rouse, Erlanger
Vice President William E. Johnson, Frankfort
Immediate Past President Margaret E. Keane, Louisville
Young Lawyers Section Chair Jacqueline Sue Wright, Maysville

Bar Governors
1st SCD
Jonathan Freed, Paducah
2nd SCD
Thomas N. Kerrick, Bowling Green
3rd SCD
M. Gail Wilson, Jamestown
4th SCD
Douglas C. Ballantine, Louisville
5th SCD
Anita M. Britton, Lexington
6th SCD
David V. Kramer, Crestview Hills
7th SCD
Bobby Rowe, Prestonsburg

Other Kentucky Bar Governors currently serving terms ending June 30, 2013, are: Serieta G. Jaggers, Princeton, 1st District; R. Michael Sullivan, Owensboro, 2nd District; Richard W. Hay, Somerset, 3rd District; Douglass Farnsley, Louisville, 4th District; William R. Garmer, Lexington, 5th District; J. Stephen Smith, Fort Mitchell, 6th District; and Earl M. “Mickey” McGuire of Prestonsburg, 7th District. "

KBA News: KBA Convention in Louisville June 6 - 8, 2012

From the KBA - Kentucky Bar Association:  Hey you Kentucky lawyers - solos, big law, trial lawyers, accident insurance lawyers, and yes, even those insurance defense lawyers, mark your calendars and show up for the Derby City festivities!

"Mark your calendars now to join the Kentucky Bar Association for its 2012 Annual Convention at The Galt House Hotel in historic downtown Louisville, Wednesday, June 6 through Friday, June 8. Under our convention theme of "Honoring our Past: Preparing For Our Future,” we'll offer a wide variety of CLE programming of interest to practitioners across the Commonwealth. More details are coming soon, but please make plans now to attend! "

LawReader Posts of Note

LAWREADER RECEIVES ALLEGATIONS REGARDING THE QUESTIONABLE USE OF OUTSIDE COUNSEL BY THE KBA BAR COUNSEL

FEINBERG RECANTATION MADE AFTER TRIAL, IN CLOSED ROOM, WITHOUT CROSS-EXAMINATION – WILL THIS BE BASIS FOR NEW LEGAL THEORY ALLOWING POST TRIAL RECANTATIONS

WHAT ISSUE MIGHT BE CONSIDERED BY THE KY. SUPREME COURT IN THEIR DISCRETIONARY REVIEW OF THE COURT OF APPEALS RULING IN ABBOTT V. GALLION ET AL?

KENTUCKY SUP. CT. GRANTS DISCRETIONARY REVIEW OF DISMISSAL BY CT. OF APPEALS IN ABBOTT V. GALLION FEN PHEN CIVIL CASE

The Media Seems Outraged by Newt’s Plan to Arrest Judges Who Make Rulings He disagrees With….But that same doctrine has been advanced by the KBA in Kentucky, and was recently upheld

DUTY OF ATTORNEYS TO REPORT ETHICAL VIOLATIONS OF OTHER ATTORNEYS – Does this apply to Bar Counsel’s Office?

IS IT POSSIBLE FOR BAR COUNSEL’S OFFICE TO HIDE ETHICS COMPLAINTS AND PROTECT THEIR FRIENDS?

DUTY OF ATTORNEYS TO REPORT ETHICAL VIOLATIONS OF OTHER ATTORNEYS – Does this apply to Bar Counsel’s Office?

COPY OF ANGELA FORD BRIEF SEEKING TO AVOID ACCOUNTING TO U.S. ATTORNEY

WHEN WILL THE KBA TELL THE PUBLIC WHY THEY FIRED LINDA GOSNELL? OPPOSITION TO BOARD OF GOVERNORS GROWS.

AOC CLAIMS COURTS ARE OPEN AND TRANSPARENT – BUT KBA REFUSES TO RELEASE INFORMATION

Lawyers: "Chesley: Delay disbarment process"

From Courier Journal:

Chesley: Delay disbarment process

Cincinnati lawyer Stan Chesley has asked the Kentucky Supreme Court to delay considering his disbarment for his role in the fen-phen scandal so his lawyers can investigate why the Kentucky Bar Association's chief disciplinary lawyer was fired earlier this