Florida lawyer claims she used trust funds to avoid homelessness
Ethics
Florida lawyer says she used trust account funds to avoid becoming homeless
October 17, 2024, 1:58 pm CDT
An Orlando, Florida, lawyer accused of client trust account violations has said she used some settlement funds during the COVID-19 pandemic to avoid becoming homeless when she lost her primary job as a schoolteacher. (Image from Shutterstock)
An Orlando, Florida, lawyer accused of client trust account violations has said she used some settlement funds during the COVID-19 pandemic to avoid becoming homeless when she lost her primary job as a schoolteacher.
The Florida Supreme Court placed the lawyer, Natalie Renee Jones of Florida, on emergency suspension in a Sept. 16 order summarized by the Florida Bar News.
The Miami Herald covered the suspension and Jones’ explanation.
Hurricanes Helene and Milton are further compounding Jones’ troubles, Jones said in a motion for an extension of time to comply with the suspension order. Jones said that the hurricanes had forced her to leave her home and office and that she was unable to access essential documents and records. The bar conducted an audit. It found shortages in the trust account ranging from $3,333 to $37,052 from December 2020 to June 2024, according to the suspension petition.
Jones told disciplinary authorities in a June letter that she used client settlement funds for personal expenses because “the alternative would have rendered my son and me homeless.”
The letter said Jones began working as a schoolteacher a year before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. She said that she was not a threat to the public as all clients received the full settlement money. In her response to the petition for emergency suspension, Jones stated that she was an attorney with a 30-year career “devoid of bar violations or complaints.” Medical providers impacted by delayed funds were contacted and informed.
Jones said she is an attorney with a 30-year career that is “devoid of bar violations or complaints.”
Since the bar inquiry began, Jones said, she has taken a continuing legal education course on emotional resiliency, has sought counseling, and has listened to podcasts on managing client trust accounts.
Neither Jones nor her lawyer, Christopher L. Clark of the First Neighborhood Law Firm, immediately responded to an ABA Journal request for comment sent to email addresses used in the disciplinary case.
