A Dauphin County attorney who bungled a client’s own damage scenario, lied about it, and then utilized his own revenue to give her a bogus “settlement” experienced his regulation license suspended by the state Supreme Courtroom on Tuesday.
That two-12 months consensual suspension of Peter Richard Henninger Jr.’s license is centered on conclusions of the significant court’s Office environment of Disciplinary Counsel pertaining to Henninger’s dealing with of the scenario of customer who was injured in an elevator at the Hollywood On line casino.
According to disciplinary business filings, the client was hurt in December 2014 when an elevator door shut on her leg. Henninger filed a notice to sue on the woman’s behalf in Dauphin County Court docket two decades later.
Then, the disciplinary board contends, Henninger didn’t adhere to as a result of.
He under no circumstances responded to requests by Schindler Elevator Corp. for his client’s health-related records, nor did he reply to the firm’s ask for for a settlement demand from customers, the board claims. It claims Henninger did not react to any filings the defendants created in the situation for 3 several years.
Lastly, at the ask for of the defendants, a choose dismissed the circumstance in February thanks that deficiency of activity.
Henninger did not convey to his client about that, the board states. It promises he did not even return any of her phone calls till she submitted a complaint with the Place of work of Disciplinary Counsel. Henninger explained to investigators the woman’s circumstance experienced gotten “lost in the shuffle,” in accordance to the board.
He also claimed, falsely, that he experienced been involved in negotiations to settle the woman’s case, investigators contend. They say Henninger then explained to the client that a settlement experienced been achieved, employed his individual income to pay out her $25,000, and submitted bogus information of the nonexistent settlement.
Last but not least, just after a probe of his actions, Henninger “acknowledged that he had lied to (the consumer) and the ODC about getting obtained a settlement offer from Hollywood Casino when, in fact, he experienced not engaged in any settlement conversations,” the board’s complaint states.
Investigators concluded Henninger had violated the Procedures of Job Carry out for attorneys by failing to deliver the consumer with capable illustration, by failing to update her on the standing of the circumstance or reply to her requests for facts, and by engaging in “conduct involving dishonesty, fraud deceit or misrepresentation.”