Rogers lawyer reprimanded for filing case over son's cursing at school

BENTONVILLE -- A Rogers lawyer must pay more than $16,000 in fines, fees and restitution in connection with three of his cases.

The Arkansas Supreme Court Committee on Professional Conduct decided last month to issue two reprimands and a caution against Ken Swindle.

Attorney sanctions

The order of sanctions, from least to most severe:

w Warning (non-public)

w Caution (public)

w Reprimand (public)

w Suspension

w Disbarment.

Source: Arkansas Supreme Court Committee on Professional Conduct

"I had my day in court and I accept the findings of that panel," Swindle said. "I'm not appealing."

One case involved Swindle's then 5-year-old son using the F-word at Northside Elementary on three occasions starting Feb. 29, 2012, according to the committee's written decision.

The boy was counseled for the first offense; a note was sent to his parents for the second one; and the principal contacted Swindle by telephone to come pick up his son for the remainder of the school day after the third time, according to documents.

Swindle did not pick up his son, but did file a lawsuit against Northside Principal Anita Turner and Rogers School District.

Circuit Judge Xollie Duncan upheld the suspension and dismissed Swindle's lawsuit. The Arkansas Court of Appeals later upheld Duncan's decision.

The state Professional Conduct committee had a hearing last month about the matter.

David Matthews, attorney for the Rogers School District, testified by deposition and reported he did not file a complaint against Swindle. He told Swindle his son's suspension would be over that school day and the school district's policy did not provide any record of the disciplinary action to be on his son's record.

Duncan testified Swindle conducted himself properly and she did not consider it to be a frivolous lawsuit.

The committee found Swindle filed his lawsuit in haste and anger and without the professional judgment expected of an attorney, especially because if Swindle or his wife had picked up their son he would not have had to spend more than three hours in the principal's office studying or doing homework.

There were several charges in the complaint including the committee's finding that the lawsuit and appeals filed required unnecessary expenditure of trial court and appellate court time and resources.

The committee issued a reprimand to Swindle and ordered him to pay $7,120 in restitution to the Rogers School District.

Swindle was issued a second reprimand after the committee found Swindle improperly, knowingly and deliberately shared his legal fee with a non-lawyer and no sale or purchase of a law practice was involved.

The committee's written decision states Swindle agreed to give tax-preparer Francisco Menendez 10 percent of his fee after Menendez referred a case to the lawyer that ended with a $180,000 settlement. Swindle's legal fee was $60,000 and he paid Menendez $6,000.

The committee fined Swindle $6,000, according to documents.

Swindle also received a caution by the committee in a third case involving his representation of a two people against an insurance company.

Swindle filed a lawsuit against Southern Farm Bureau Casualty Insurance Co. on Oct. 19, 2012 after he said the insurance company stalled making a settlement payment. The case made its way to the Arkansas Supreme Court.

The Professional Conduct panel had nine charges to vote on and found Swindle did not violate rules in eight of the charges. The panel voted that Swindle did pursue a hasty and frivolous lawsuit against the insurance company and ordered him to pay $3,490.

Swindle must pay a total $16,600 to the the clerk of the Arkansas Supreme Court.

NW News on 08/11/2018

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