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01/08/2010 "See News Release 001 for any Concurrences and/or Dissents."

SUPREME COURT OF LOUISIANA NO. 09-B-1814 IN RE: FRANCIS C. BROUSSARD

ATTORNEY DISCIPLINARY PROCEEDINGS

PER CURIAM
This disciplinary matter arises from formal charges filed by the Office of Disciplinary Counsel ("ODC") against respondent, Francis C. Broussard, an attorney licensed to practice law in Louisiana.

FORMAL CHARGES In October 2005, the ODC filed two counts of formal charges against respondent, alleging the following: Count I In September 2002, Amber and Jeffrey Balsamo retained respondent to represent them due to personal injuries received by Mr. Balsamo as a result of an automobile accident. At the initial meeting with respondent, Mr. and Mrs. Balsamo signed an attorney-client contract.1 They also provided respondent with photographs, police reports, and medical information. Before this initial meeting concluded, respondent told Mr. and Mrs. Balsamo that he would be in touch with them. Despite numerous attempts by Mr. and Mrs. Balsamo to contact respondent, they were unable to communicate with him. Due to the lack of communication, Mr. and Mrs. Balsamo terminated respondent's representation via certified mail on March 19, 2003. Mr. and Mrs. Balsamo then hired a new attorney, Norman Gordon, who discovered that the
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Actually, the retainer agreement in the record reflects that it is signed only by Mr.

Balsamo.

Balsamo's lawsuit was not filed until the day before the prescription date. Respondent failed to include a loss of consortium claim on behalf of Mrs. Balsamo and their children. Further, respondent failed to take any steps to perfect service of the lawsuit on the out-of-state defendants under the Long Arm Statute, placing the Balsamo's claim for damages in jeopardy.2 Mr. Gordon requested, in writing, a complete copy of his clients' file from respondent on April 2, 2003. The copy of the file respondent provided did not include the documents and photographs Mr. and Mrs. Balsamo had given to respondent. Despite a second request to respondent by Mr. and Mrs. Balsamo for the file, these items were never returned to Mr. and Mrs. Balsamo. A review of the depositions taken of the parties in the companion federal court case prior to Mr. Gordon's representation did not disclose any participation on the part of respondent. The ODC alleged that respondent's conduct violated the following provisions of the Rules of Professional Conduct: Rules 1.3 (failure to act with reasonable diligence and promptness in representing a client), 1.4 (failure to communicate with a client), 1.16(d) (obligations upon termination of the representation), and 3.2 (failure to make reasonable efforts to expedite litigation).

Count II On October 10, 2003, Patsy McMorris retained respondent to represent her in a worker's compensation matter. At the time she hired respondent, Ms. McMorris was already receiving worker's compensation benefits arising out of injuries she received when she fell down stairs at work. With respect to the worker's compensation matter, there is evidence that Ms. McMorris forwarded her medical bills to respondent, who in turn faxed the bills to the worker's compensation claims adjuster. According to Ms.

In fact, in October 2003, the petition filed by respondent on October 3, 2002 was dismissed without prejudice for failure to serve the defendants timely. The suit was thereafter reinstated. 2

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McMorris, however, the bills were faxed to the claims adjuster on February 26, 2004 referencing the wrong person, presumably another of respondent's clients. Furthermore, Ms. McMorris complains that respondent failed to attend a scheduled meeting between the worker's compensation nurse and Ms. McMorris' physician. Ms. McMorris also retained respondent in February 2004 to represent her in a claim for Social Security disability benefits. A pre-hearing order dated June 8, 2004 specifically states that it is the representative's responsibility to ensure that the medical records are up to date and that all pertinent medical evidence has been submitted to the Office of Hearing and Appeals fourteen days prior to the date of the hearing. The hearing in Ms. McMorris' matter was set for September 20, 2004. According to Ms. McMorris, however, respondent did not request her medical records from her treating physician, Dr. Burkett, until August 25, 2004, nor did he have evidence of her prescriptions prior to the hearing despite the fact that she provided this evidence to him one week prior to the hearing. On the day of the hearing, respondent did not have the information with him. After the hearing, Ms. McMorris sent a packet to the administrative law judge with all of her recent medical records and a letter explaining her disability. Ms. McMorris was ultimately awarded disability benefits. Ms. McMorris requested her Social Security file from respondent by letter dated November 3, 2004. Respondent informed her that if she wanted copies of the file, she should request it from the Social Security Administration office. On August 22, 2004, Ms. McMorris was involved in an automobile accident, and she retained respondent to represent her in that matter. Although respondent apparently agreed to pay for Ms. McMorris' CT scan, when she appeared at the hospital for the test, she was told that respondent had refused to pay for it. Apparently, the hospital employee announced that Ms. McMorris could wait until the check arrived for payment of the test. Ms. McMorris complains that she was
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humiliated by respondent's failure to properly handle this matter and that she left the hospital crying. The ODC alleged that respondent's conduct violated the following provisions of the Rules of Professional Conduct: Rules 1.3 and 1.16(d).

DISCIPLINARY PROCEEDINGS The formal charges were served upon respondent by certified mail in October 2005. Respondent filed an answer to the formal charges denying any misconduct, and he supplemented his answer with an "Additional Response to Charges" in which he briefly elaborated on his position regarding the allegations. The matter was then set for a hearing in February 2006. The hearing was reset and continued on several occasions, and in October 2008, respondent and the ODC informed the hearing committee that they wished to submit this matter on stipulations and briefs. On December 2, 2008, the parties filed a joint stipulation agreeing to the facts as set forth in the formal charges. Respondent also stipulated that he violated the Rules of Professional Conduct as charged. The parties further stipulated to the introduction of exhibits, stipulated to the applicable aggravating and mitigating factors, and stipulated that the appropriate sanction in this case is a six-month suspension, fully deferred, subject to a one-year period of supervised probation with conditions. Accordingly, no hearing was held, and the matter was submitted to the hearing committee on the stipulations and documentary evidence only. By letter dated December 10, 2008, respondent confirmed his agreement "with the stipulations, exhibits and recommended punishment," and presented facts and argument in mitigation.3

It is unclear why the matter proceeded in this fashion, rather than pursuant to a petition for consent discipline filed in this court in accordance with the provisions of Supreme Court Rule XIX,

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